CryptofirmCircle,thesecond-largeststablecoinissuer,isoptimisticthattheUKwillintroducestablecoinregulationswithin“months,notyears.”DanteDisparte,Circle’sglobalheadofpolicy,sharedthisoutlookduringarecentinterviewwithCNBCinLondon,highlightingtheurgencyforformallegislationintheburgeoningstablecoinmarket.
Dispartewarnedthatwithoutstablecoinregulations,theUKrisksfallingbehindregionsliketheEuropeanUnionandSingapore,whichhavealreadystartedimplementingtheirownregulatoryframeworks.
ReflectingontheUK’scautiousapproachtocryptoregulation,Disparteacknowledgedthechallengesfacedbytheindustryin2022,includingthehigh-profilecollapseoftheFTXexchange,wherestakeholdersarestillawaitingrefundsin2024.HenotedthattheUK’sdelayinenactingstrictlawsmayhavebeenprudent,allowingthegovernmenttolearnfromglobalmarketupheavals.
However,hecautionedagainstfurtherdelays,sayingtheycouldhinderinnovationandeconomicgrowth.“Youcan’thavetheeconomyofthefutureunlessyouhavethemoneyofthefuture,”Disparteargued.HehighlightedthepotentialbenefitsofstablecoinsfortheUK’sfinanciallandscape,suchasimprovementsinreal-timepaymentsandthedigitizationoftheBritishpound.
TheStablecoinMarket:GrowthandControversy
Stablecoinsareamultibillion-dollarindustryvaluedatover$170billion.Tether’sUSDTisthelargeststablecoinwithamarketcapitalizationexceeding$120billion.Circle’sUSDCrankssecondwithacirculatingvalueofover$34billion.
However,themarkethasfacedsignificantcontroversies.In2022,Tether’sUSDTbrieflylostits$1pegfollowingthecollapseoftherivalstablecoinTerraformLabs’sterraUSD.ThisledtoquestionsaboutwhetherUSDTwasgenuinelybacked1:1byanequivalentamountofdollarsandotherassetsinTether’sreserves.
BankofEnglandExploringCBDC
TheBankofEnglandisalsoexploringthepossibilityofacentralbankdigitalcurrency(CBDC),informallyreferredtoas“Britcoin.”DispartementionedthatdiscussionswithBankofEnglandofficialshavebeenpromising.
WhilepreviousConservativegovernmentplansprojectedstablecoinregulationstobeinplacebymid-2023,thecurrentLabouradministrationhasyettoassertastrongstanceoncryptoregulation.Nonetheless,thereareindicationsthatdiscussionsareongoingregardingtheUK’sroleasaleaderinfinancialtechnology.
Disclaimer:Theinformationpresentedinthisarticleisforinformationalandeducationalpurposesonly.Thearticledoesnotconstitutefinancialadviceoradviceofanykind.CoinEditionisnotresponsibleforanylossesincurredasaresultoftheutilizationofcontent,products,orservicesmentioned.Readersareadvisedtoexercisecautionbeforetakinganyactionrelatedtothecompany.
coinedition.com