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Highlights
- Matt Hancock, former Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, urged the House of Commons to ensure the development of Fintech and cryptocurrencies within the country.
- Hancock felt that while tokenisation could ensure greater liquidity in the assets, hence by investing in blockchain technologies, the UK can explore the sector.
Fintech is making waves in the digital banking sector. The UK is a major destination in this sector, many experts are supporting the development of fintech solutions and cryptocurrencies within the nation.
Matt Hancock, former Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, urged the House of Commons that the Boris Johnson government needs to commit to progressive development of Fintech, blockchain technologies, and cryptos, which are decentralised in nature and gives the power to people to choose where and how much they want to invest. Therefore, it is critical for the UK to embrace modern technology to make life easier for its citizens.
Hancock felt that while tokenisation could ensure greater liquidity in the assets, exploring the blockchain technologies could provide the UK the edge. He further highlighted that cryptos could provide economic stimulation and could even reduce financial crimes in the country.
Hancock’s comments could be very encouraging for crypto investors. A few weeks ago, several MPs and members of the House of Lords launched the Crypto and Digital Assets Group, which wanted to look at the regulation possibilities. Lisa Cameron, MP, Scottish National Party, suggested that all policymakers should review and agree on crypto trading and regulations in the UK.
Also read: Is Russia heading towards crypto ban?
Increasing crypto adoption
So far, the UK government has taken an apprehensive stance on cryptos. In fact, Bank of England Deputy Governor Sir Jon Cunliffe said cryptos could lead to a financial meltdown and it is crucial for the UK government to work towards regulations.
The crypto adoption in the UK went up from 5.2% in October 2021 to 6.1% in December 2021 and it is at the third position in terms of crypto adoption as per Finder survey. The UK stood behind the likes of Singapore and Australia, which are at the first and second position, respectively.
But as the BoE and government are still apprehensive towards crypto adoption, many people are keen on what happens in the future. Today, UK citizens are quite active when it comes to doing retail transactions and it does close to US$170 billion (£123 billion).
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In fact, former Chancellor of the Exchequer Philip Hammond stated that it will be unwise for the UK to regulate cryptos as it would fall significantly behind other European Union nations.
Conclusion
Hancock’s comments are in a way positive for the crypto enthusiasts who are dreading that the country may choose to totally ban crypto trading. Only time will tell whether the government will pay heed to the suggestions and bring in an adaptable business model suitable both for the crypto developers, enthusiasts, and investors.
