United Kingdom
The UK has a new name for stablecoins and a new bill to regulate crypto
The United Kingdom moved forward on the Financial Services and Markets Bill on Oct. 25, hardening its vision for Bitcoin (BTC) cryptocurrency and “digital settlement assets” in the country. The Bill, proposed on Oct. 18, suggested would propose “A range of measures to maintain and enhance the U.K.’s position as a global leader in financial services, ensuring the sector continues to deliver for individuals and businesses across the country.” The Bill reasserts the U.K.’s intention to become a global cryptocurrency hub, comments echoed by Dr. Lisa Cameron, Member of Parliament and the chairperson of The Crypto and Digital Assets All-Party Parliamentary Group. In an exclusive interview with Cointelegraph over the weekend, she explained that crypto is on the lawmakers’ radar, although there is...
British MP Lisa Cameron on Bitcoin and UK becoming international crypto hub
The United Kingdom could be warming to Bitcoin (BTC) and crypto. Taking a timeout from Scotland’s first major Bitcoin conference, Cointelegraph spoke to Lisa Cameron, a Member of Parliament who is spending more and more time working with digital assets. Cameron told Cointelegraph: “I have spoken to companies who are involved in CBDCs and stablecoins. We’ve looked at crypto tokens, and Bitcoin is obviously part of the sector.” As the Scottish National Party Member of Parliament for East Kilbride, Strathaven and Lesmahagow (areas of Scotland), Cameron works in Westminster–a metonym for the Parliament of the United Kingdom. She rubs shoulders with the new crypto-curious Prime Minister, Rishi Sunak. Cameron is also the chairperson of The Crypto and Digital Assets All-Party Parliamentary ...
Wealthy crypto believer and incoming UK PM Rishi Sunak once commissioned a royal NFT
Rishi Sunak is set to become prime minister of the United Kingdom within days. Sunak was defeated for the top government post by Liz Truss on Sept. 5, but she resigned after 45 days in office. Indications so far are that his selection for the office is good news for the crypto industry. Sunak was chancellor of the exchequer, or head of the treasury, from early 2020 to July 5, when he resigned during a scandal that shook Boris Johnson’s government. During that time, Sunak repeatedly voiced his support for crypto. Speaking in April about proposed regulatory reform related to stablecoins, Sunak said: “It’s my ambition to make the U.K. a global hub for crypto-asset technology, and the measures we’ve outlined […] will help to ensure firms can invest, innovate and scale up in this country. This ...
UK inflation rate hits 10.1%, British Bitcoin community responds
Prices in the United Kingdom continue to rise, hitting another 40-year high of 10.1%. According to figures from the U.K’s Office for National Statistics, the Consumer Prices Index (CPI) rose by 10.1% in the 12 months to September 2022, up from 9.9% in August. The 10.1% figure mirrors July’s recent high. The Bank of England is 8% off the inflation target, while interest rates are 2.25%. Source: Bankofengland.co.uk According to ONS data, “Rising food prices made the largest upward contribution to the change in both the CPIH and CPI annual inflation rates between August and September 2022.” The BBC reported that the Ukraine war led to an increase in grain prices, also sharing that dairy products have risen by over 30% in cost in one year. But what do incessant price rises mean for the British...
Defected Records’ New Owner Wez Saunders On Protecting The Label’s Legacy: I’m Not Here To Reinvent The Wheel’
On a late summer morning in London, Wez Saunders walked into work at the Defected Records headquarters and greeted his staff as he has for years. But on this otherwise normal day, something felt different: “Just for a split second,” Saunders recalls, “it was like, ‘Wow, I own this now.’” On August 23, Defected announced that its founder, Simon Dunmore, was stepping down as CEO, with Saunders, who has been with the label in various roles since 2014, acquiring the music company and all its subsidiaries. (Dunmore will stay on in a new role as A&R consultant.) Though Saunders had worked closely with Dunmore in running Defected’s day-to-day operations, there’s a pressure in taking over a label with so much history. When Dunmore launched Defected in 1999, its first release, Soulsearche...
FCA green lights Revolut, making no UK crypto firms operating under temporary status
The United Kingdom’s Financial Conduct Authority, or FCA, has added cryptocurrency-friendly payments app Revolut to its list of companies authorized to offer crypto products and services in the country. In a Monday update to its list of registered crypto asset firms in the U.K., the FCA showed Revolut was in compliance with amended regulations from 2017 on “Money Laundering, Terrorist Financing and Transfer of Funds.” The fintech firm joined 37 other companies with the green light to offer crypto services in the country after being granted an extension to operate as a crypto asset firm with temporary registration in March. Firms offering crypto-related products and services in the U.K. are permitted to operate following registration with the FCA, a rule in force since 2020. How...
GBP follows euro: The pound-dollar rate hits all-time low
The Great British pound sterling has fallen to the lowest level ever against the United States dollar. In a flurry of overnight trading activity, the pound reached lows of 1 pound = $1.04. It lost 5% of its value in a spiral. The United Kingdom’s sovereign currency, the pound sterling, is the world’s oldest currency that is still in use today. It is currently clinging above USD-pound parity, since regaining $.03 cents, bouncing to 1 pound = $1.07. Source: Google The pound has been on a steady decline against the USD since 2007 and the subsequent financial crisis. While it has lost 20% of its value this year, it has lost half of its value against the dollar over the past 20 years. Deputy Leader for the Labour Party, the government’s opposition party, was quick to compare the pou...
British regulator lists FTX crypto exchange as ‘unauthorized’ firm
The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), the chief financial regulator in the United Kingdom, issued a warning to Bahama-based crypto exchange FTX, claiming it operates without authorization. The company joined a growing list of unregistered cryptocurrency-related businesses that continue to outweigh those signed up with the FCA. A warning note, dated Sept. 16, claims that the firm “may be providing financial services or products in the UK without authorization.” Addressing the potential customers, the FCA notes that they won’t be able to get their money back or seek the protection of the Financial Services Compensation Scheme “if things go wrong.” By the end of August, the list of crypto companies registered with the FCA included 37 entities, with the Crypto.com becoming the latest to...
Utopia Music Buys Leading UK Physical Distributor Cinram Novum
LONDON — Swiss-based tech company Utopia Music is making further inroads into the record business with the acquisition of U.K. physical distributor Cinram Novum, which provides warehouse, fulfillment and distribution services to a number of labels, including Universal Music Group, Sony Music Entertainment and PIAS. Terms were not disclosed for the deal, which was done through Utopia’s U.K. subsidiary Utopia Distribution Services Limited. The acquisition marks a significant expansion of the company’s fast-growing music distribution business. In January, Utopia acquired Proper Music Group, the U.K.’s leading independent physical music distributor, which provides distribution services for 1,000-plus indie labels and service companies and counts Rough Trade, HMV and supermarkets Tesco, Mo...
Bitcoin on the streets: the trick to onboarding UK merchants into BTC
“Do you accept Bitcoin? Would you Like to?” These questions echoed around the streets of Reading, near London, United Kingdom, over a hard day’s graft for two British Bitcoin (BTC) advocates. James Dewar, founding partner of Bridge2Bitcoin, and MSW, a business developer for CoinCorner, took to the streets of Reading in a marathon mission of merchant adoption. In just six hours, they spoke to 63 shops, cafés and restaurants, hoping to persuade them to accept BTC. Armed with flyers, sales experience and oodles of enthusiasm for the world’s largest cryptocurrency, the Bitcoiners detailed the data and their experiences interacting with the general public. Of the 63 merchants they spoke to, around 50% were a straight rejection, and 10 of the 30 were “worth a follow-up,” Dewar told Cointel...
Huobi wins license in the British Virgin Islands, no timeline for the UK yet
Major cryptocurrency exchange Huobi continues to expand its global footprint by entering the British Virgin Islands, a British Overseas Territory. Huobi officially announced on Friday that it secured an investment business license from the Financial Services Commission (FSC) of the British Virgin Islands. The approval allows Huobi to operate a virtual asset exchange under the subsidiary Brtuomi Worldwide Limited (BWL). According to the announcement, BWL plans to offer a range of crypto trading services, including spot trading of cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin (BTC) and Ether (ETH) as well as derivatives trading. The company positions itself as the first digital asset trading platform operator in the British Virgin Islands licensed to run an institutional-grade crypto trading platform for bo...
UK economic secretary commits to make country a crypto hub under new PM
Richard Fuller, the Economic Secretary to the Treasury, said the government wants the United Kingdom to be the “dominant global hub for crypto technologies.” In a parliamentary debate on crypto asset regulation in the U.K. on Wednesday, Fuller spoke in favor of “powerful” use cases for cryptocurrency and blockchain technology, including using distributed ledger technology for customs and international trade and storing medical records on the blockchain. Alexander Stafford, the parliamentary private secretary to newly elected PM Liz Truss, added the prime minister “reaffirmed” her commitment to providing internet connectivity for U.K. residents, which could allow access to buying, selling, and mining crypto. “As crypto technologies grow in significance, the U.K. Government are seeking ways ...
