In a consultation paper, the U.K. government confirmed its intentions to regulate the cryptocurrency market, stating that it hopes to introduce formal legislation by 2024.
The government released a response to a consultation paper that contained suggestions for regulating the cryptocurrency sector and was published earlier this year.
The government stated in the paper that it plans to subject various cryptoasset operations to the same rules that apply to banks and other financial services companies.
The minister of financial services in the United Kingdom, Andrew Griffith, expressed his pleasure in presenting the government’s final proposals for cryptoasset regulation in a statement, “I’m excited about our ongoing collaboration with the industry to realize our goal of establishing the UK as a major hub for cryptocurrency technology worldwide.”
Stricter regulations for exchanges, custodians (who hold cryptocurrency on behalf of clients), and crypto lending firms are among the measures put forth by the government.
In addition, the UK suggests tougher regulations for market manipulation and the issuing and disclosure of cryptoassets.
The paper states that by 2024, the government hopes to present laws pertaining to the cryptocurrency industry to Parliament.
Right now, it’s unclear what the UK’s cryptocurrency laws will entail.
With its Markets in Crypto-Assets (MiCA) regulation, the EU outlined a precise framework for digital assets, complete with a licensing procedure for crypto companies.
Compared to other tech-leading countries, the U.K. is further along in the process. Though there are many bills pending in Congress, the United States is lagging behind other nations in establishing official federal laws pertaining to the cryptocurrency sector.
