UK should become a global crypto hub – without the usual “procurement crime”

The country aims to become the world’s leading center for the crypto industry while eradicating crypto-based cybercrime. Retail investors in the UK will no longer be allowed to engage in crypto derivatives trading.

UK Minister for Digital Affairs Chris Philp has reiterated the authorities’ decision to make the country the best and cleanest crypto hub in the world. However, he is concerned about the risk that criminals could also benefit from it. Philp made the statement in an interview with Bloomberg Radio on Wednesday. The minister explained:

“We want to bring the best crypto players and projects to the UK, especially London. However, we are very careful when it comes to protecting our citizens. We do not want digital assets to be used for illegal financial transactions and other criminal purposes.”

In early April, the UK Treasury reiterated its plans to make the UK one of the authoritative crypto hubs in the world. The announcement sparked relief in the crypto industry. So far, many leading crypto players have found UK financial regulators to be too strict on the industry.

UK Treasury Bans Retail Investors From Crypto Derivatives Trading

The UK Treasury has imposed stricter marketing requirements for crypto businesses. One of the measures is to ban retail investors from trading crypto derivatives. There have been numerous fraud cases in the crypto space in recent years. However, many analysts blame the authorities themselves for the rising number.

They argue that the lack of proper regulation of the crypto market is the main cause of rising crime. For example, two months ago, a US regulator accused Anchorage Digital Bank of promoting money laundering. The bank failed to report obviously questionable transactions.

Both the US and the EU have special bodies that oversee the crypto space. The aim is to screen all crypto projects for their legality so that the black sheep can be prosecuted.

Currently, however, rising interest rates and the crash of top crypto projects are causing the entire crypto market to shrink significantly. Thus, the collapse of the Terra network had a huge negative impact on the crypto market cap. On June 15, Bitcoin was trading at just $20,000. It is the December 2020 level.

Minister Philp said the Treasury is working with other regulators in the UK to make the UK the top crypto hub. He specifically mentioned The Bank of England, the Prudential Regulation Authority and the Financial Conduct Authority.

London Stock Exchange is currently doing better than the NASDAQ

Philp also spoke about the recent setbacks in the stock markets:

“During London Tech Week on Monday, I spoke to founders and CEOs whose companies are listed on the London Stock Exchange. Many have told me that if they had been listed on NASDAQ rather than the London Stock Exchange, the share price would have gone down. So I think the London Stock Exchange is doing better than the NASDAQ in the current circumstances.”

The UK All-Share Index is six times smaller than the NASDAQ Composite Index. However, Britain plans to overhaul its policy to make the London Stock Exchange even more competitive. The companies would then no longer be forced to be listed on the NASDAQ.