Treasury Economic Secretary Emma Reynolds spoke at the Financial Times Digital Assets Summit in London on Tuesday, stressing that while the UK aims to be a cryptocurrency hub, it will take a different approach to the U.S. and the EU in regulating Bitcoin and cryptocurrencies.
“We don’t think it’s suitable for our market,” Reynolds said of the National Bitcoin Reserve. “We know that’s what the U.S. is aiming, but it’s not our plan.”
The statement comes as the UK government prepares to implement a new regulatory framework for Bitcoin and cryptocurrency by the end of 2025. Rather than stipulating the adoption of the EU market in the U.S. reserve strategy within its existing financial services framework, or following the U.S. reserve strategy.
Reynolds noted that the UK has established a “high-level official working group” with the United States to discuss cooperation on bitcoin and cryptocurrencies, with a regulatory forum scheduled for June. This follows the latest meeting between the British Treasury Prime Minister and U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent.
The UK approach focuses on regulating Bitcoin and crypto “inside the regulation outside the operation of traditional financial services companies” and follows the principle of “same risk, same regulatory approach”.
Reynolds acknowledges the challenges facing regulating certain aspects of Bitcoin and crypto, especially the decentralized nature of Bitcoin. “The government can only do a lot of things in this regard,” she said. “We know that some of these things are amorphous, and dispersed things are particularly difficult.”
At press time, Bitcoin was trading at $93,857, down 0.45% in the past 24 hours as the market digested the UK’s regulatory stance.
