On Wednesday, Nikhil Rathi, CEO of the United Kingdom's Financial Conduct Authority, or FCA, issued the following statement to the Treasury Committee when asked about the risks of the much-unregulated cryptocurrency sector in the country: When we talk about the compensation scheme, we have to draw some pretty clear lines. I would suggest anything is crypto-related should not be entitled to compensations, and consumers should be clear about that when investing. In the passage, Rathi refers to the FCA's Financial Services Compensation Scheme, or FSCS, which pays out compensation to consumers when certain authorized financial institutions cannot meet claims against …

A recent update to Her Majesty’s Revenue and Customs (HMRC) regulations has introduced a digital services tax that will be levied on cryptocurrency exchanges operating in the United Kingdom. Crypto exchanges in the UK will now have to pay a 2% digital services tax according to a Telegraph report. Britain’s tax authority, HMRC, does not recognize digital assets as financial instruments and therefore exchanges are not eligible for financial exemptions. On Nov. 28, the authority included cryptocurrency exchanges under the Treasury’s tech tax. The digital services tax on revenue was introduced in April 2020 targeting social media and search giants …

Bank of England governor Andrew Bailey has expressed concerns over El Salvador’s adoption of Bitcoin (BTC) as legal tender after President Nayib Bukele announced the launch of Bitcoin City. Bailey argued that El Salvador’s decision to adopt Bitcoin as a currency was alarming because consumers are likely to suffer from the cryptocurrency’s extreme volatility. Trading around $43,000 on the first day of El Salvador’s Bitcoin adoption as legal tender, Bitcoin surged to a new historical high above $68,000 on Nov. 9. BTC price has significantly tumbled since then, with Bitcoin trading at $54,626 at the time of writing. “It concerns …

The U.K. Law Commission, tasked with monitoring the laws in the United Kingdom and recommending reforms, has said England and Wales do not need statutory law reform for smart legal contracts in the digital asset space. In a Nov. 25 announcement, the commission said smart contracts built using distributed ledger technology are permissible within England’s and Wales’ current legal framework. The Law Commission recommended only “an incremental development of the common law” as needed for existing frameworks, but also encouraged any parties to smart contracts to explain risks relating to “the performance of the code” and any other necessary terms. …

English Premier League football club Manchester City have suspended a partnership with a startup crypto firm after seemingly not doing its due diligence prior to signing. According to Daily Mail reporter Jack Gaughan, Manchester City is currently “conducting further enquiries” regarding 3key Technologies, the crypto firm with which the club inked a deal on Nov. 12. At the time, the football club said it would be collaborating with 3key to raise awareness of its reported decentralized finance, or DeFi, trading analysis products as a regional partner. Manchester City suspend partnership with "3Key", a start-up cryptocurrency firm whose executives do not …

Sian Berry, former co-leader of the Green Party of England and Wales and current member of the London Assembly, is looking to crack down on crypto advertisements on public transport. According to a Nov. 14 Twitter post, Berry said she would be recommending the Mayor of London, Sadiq Khan, ban all crypto advertising in the city’s transport network, including many rail and bus services. The assembly member’s call to action comes following token project Floki Inu announcing it would conduct an “full-out assault on the London public transportation system” with posters on Underground trains and buses. Like gambling ads, which …

The Bank of England and the U.K. finance ministry are planning to launch a consultation on the possible rollout of a central bank digital currency starting in 2022. In a Nov. 9 statement, the Bank of England said the digital pound consultation with HM Treasury would consider design features, benefits and implications for users and business, as well as other relevant issues. The results of the 2022 consultation will determine whether U.K. authorities intend to move forward with a central bank digital currency, or CBDC. “If the results of this ‘development’ phase conclude that the case for CBDC is made, …

British cryptocurrency services provider Crypterium is the latest crypto firm to secure registration from the United Kingdom’s Financial Conduct Authority (FCA). Crypterium officially announced on Oct. 25 that it has recently been registered by the FCA to provide cryptocurrency services to local citizens and companies, becoming one of few companies to have passed the registration process. According to data on the FCA’s official website, Crypterium has been registered to operate “certain crypto asset activities” in compliance with the country’s Anti-Money Laundering (AML) regulations since Oct. 11. The registration officially authorized Crypterium to continue providing its crypto wallet services, including crypto …

Most young investors in the United Kingdom are entering the crypto market thanks to the hype on social media and news, but they are not aware that the market is not regulated, a new study published by the United Kingdom's Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) revealed. The survey revealed that a majority (69%) of the investors under the age of 40 mistakenly believe that crypto markets are regulated. More than three-quarters (76%) of young investors who put money on risky assets like cryptocurrencies, forex or crowdfunding are driven by competition with friends and family. The financial watchdog surveyed 1,000 British investors …

Jacobi Asset Management, a London-based multi-asset investment platform, received approval from the Guernsey Financial Services Commission (GFSC) to launch a Bitcoin (BTC) exchange-traded funds (ETF). Speaking to Cointelegraph, Jacobi Asset Management CEO Jamie Khurshid said that the regulatory clarity helps corporations and institutions to get involved in Bitcoin investments safely without all the risks associated with the technology and counterparties. According to an official statement, Jacobi Bitcoin ETF is a centrally cleared, crypto-backed financial instrument that is supported by Bitcoin custody provided by Fidelity Digital Assets. The approval from GFSC allows investors to trade Jacobi Bitcoin ETFs on traditional stock …

The Digital Pound Foundation (DPF), a group of technology, innovation and regulatory experts, has announced its launch as an independent non-profit organization in the United Kingdom. According to a release issued on Thursday, the DPF will work to promote the implementation of a central bank digital currency (CBDC) in the country. Indeed, as previously reported by Cointelegraph, the U.K. government established a CBDC task force to explore preliminary matters related to the creation of a national digital currency in April. The DPF, as part of its stated mandate, will carry out research and collaborate with stakeholders to support the U.K.’s …

Cryptocurrency lending platform Celsius Network has raised $400 million in a new equity funding round amid United States regulators increasingly cracking down on crypto lending. Announcing the news on Tuesday, Celsius noted that the latest funding was led by Canada’s second-largest pension fund, Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec (CDPQ), and WestCap, an equity firm established by former Airbnb executive Laurence Tosi. Celsius Network raises $400m. @FT "The funding round was led by WestCap... and Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec (CDPQ)." More:https://t.co/L5wpMxCvcR — Celsius (@CelsiusNetwork) October 12, 2021 The firm intends to use the proceeds from this …