Asked by: Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi (Labour - Slough)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what steps his Department is taking to help ensure that the new regulatory framework for crypto assets and stablecoins will (a) enhance the UK's global competitiveness in fintech and (b) protect consumers from the volatility and risks associated with digital currencies.
Answered by Bim Afolami - Economic Secretary (HM Treasury)
Asked by: Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi (Labour - Slough)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what regulatory measures are in place to ensure the stability and security of investments in cryptocurrencies; and whether any additional measures are being considered.
Answered by Bim Afolami - Economic Secretary (HM Treasury)
Asked by: Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi (Labour - Slough)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether his Department has made an estimate of (a) the role and (b) trends in the value of (i) bitcoin and (ii) other major cryptocurrencies in the economy in the next (A) five and (B) 10 years.
Answered by Bim Afolami - Economic Secretary (HM Treasury)
Asked by: Alun Cairns (Conservative - Vale of Glamorgan)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment has he made of the adequacy of the capacity of the Financial Conduct Authority to regulate cryptocurrencies.
Answered by Andrew Griffith - Minister of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
The government is proposing an approach to cryptoasset regulation under which firm requirements are designed and implemented by the independent regulators to ensure an agile regime able to respond to developments in the sector. The recent Financial Services and Markets Act included powers to bring stablecoins and cryptoasset activities within the FCA regulatory perimeter.
The FCA completed its Transformation Programme in March 2023 seeking to make the FCA a more innovative, assertive and adaptive regulator. It involved significant investment in the FCA’s systems and capabilities to enable better use of data and intelligence to regulate 50,000 firms effectively and efficiently. Further information on the delivery of the Transformation Programme is contained in the FCA Annual Report 2022-2023
The Government will continue to regularly discuss delivery of the Transformation Programme with the FCA to monitor progress.
Asked by: Apsana Begum (Labour - Poplar and Limehouse)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether his Department plans to give the Financial Conduct Authority further powers to regulate crypto-related companies.
Answered by Andrew Griffith - Minister of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
HMT published a public consultation on 1 February 2023 on the ‘Future financial services regulatory regime for cryptoassets’, outlining how the Government will set the regulatory perimeter for the FCA to make rules regulating crypto-related companies. Under these proposals, firms providing cryptoasset services would need to become FCA authorised and meet a range of new requirements, including (for example) prudential, data reporting, consumer protection, location policy and operational resilience requirements.
Asked by: Viscount Waverley (Crossbench - Excepted Hereditary)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government what discussions they have had with the government of Kazakhstan regarding knowledge sharing and capacity building on (1) sanctions compliance, (2) anti-money laundering measures, (3) regulation of cryptocurrencies, and (4) ‘Know Your Customer’ compliance.
Answered by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The UK Government has recently had several high-level engagements with the Government of Kazakhstan, including hosting the UK-Kazakhstan Strategic Dialogue in December, the UK-Kazakh Intergovernmental Commission on Trade and Investment in February and the Foreign Secretary's visit to Astana on 18 March, meeting President Tokayev and other senior Kazakhs. In our engagements, we continually emphasise the importance of developing and maintaining a quality business environment to support international investment into Kazakhstan. Although senior meetings have not covered the cryptocurrency regulations, the UK successfully ran a pilot project in 2022 on financial compliance to assess different types of training on tackling illicit finance.
Asked by: Darren Jones (Labour - Bristol North West)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what recent assessment his Department has made of the adequacy of regulation of crypto-currencies.
Answered by Andrew Griffith - Minister of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
The government believes that having robust and effective regulation will boost innovation - by giving people and businesses the confidence they need to use new technologies safely
A consultation on the future financial services regulatory regime for cryptoasset activities was published here: https://www.gov.uk/government/consultations/future-financial-services-regulatory-regime-for-cryptoassets on Wednesday 1 February.
In addition to this, the Financial Services and Markets Bill ensures that the Treasury can establish the legislative framework for regulating cryptoassets and stablecoins.
The government has already taken steps to bring certain cryptoasset activities into the scope of UK regulation. Since January 2020, cryptoasset firms operating in the UK have been subject to the Money Laundering Regulations. To protect consumers, on 18 January 2022, the Government set out its intention to legislate to bring certain cryptoassets into financial promotion regulation and published a further policy statement here: https://www.gov.uk/government/consultations/cryptoasset-promotions on Wednesday 1 February.
Asked by: Damien Moore (Conservative - Southport)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether his Department has made a recent assessment of the potential merits of introducing further regulations for (a) cryptocurrency exchanges and (b) other aspects of cryptocurrency markets.
Answered by John Glen - Paymaster General and Minister for the Cabinet Office
The UK is committed to creating a regulatory environment in which firms can innovate, while crucially maintaining financial stability and regulatory standards so that people and businesses can use new technologies both reliably and safely.
The Financial Services and Markets Bill will bring stablecoins within the regulatory perimeter where they are used as a form of payment. This legislation will ensure that the UK’s regulatory framework is equipped to harness benefits of stablecoins, supporting the adoption of cutting-edge technologies, while mitigating the potential risks.
HM Treasury will consult on an approach to regulating a wider set of cryptoasset activities in the coming weeks.
The Financial Services and Markets Bill also ensures that cryptoassets may be regulated within the existing financial services regulatory framework.
In addition to this, in January 2022 the government published a response to a consultation on a proposal to bring certain cryptoassets into the scope of financial promotions regulation. The forthcoming legislation, and supporting FCA rules, will regulate in-scope cryptoasset financial promotions, requiring them to be fair, clear and not misleading.
Asked by: Lord Taylor of Warwick (Non-affiliated - Life peer)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what plans they have to discuss an approach to crypto-asset regulation with other countries and international bodies.
Answered by Baroness Penn - Minister on Leave (Parliamentary Under Secretary of State)
As set at out Fintech Week in April, the UK is committed to establishing a world-leading regulatory regime for cryptoassets. Given the cross-border nature of cryptoassets, the UK is committed to working with other jurisdictions and through the international standard-setting bodies to support harmonisation of treatment as far as is feasible.
HM Treasury is engaging extensively with international partners on cryptoasset regulation on a bilateral basis. For example, HM Treasury hosted the Regulatory Pillar of the Financial Innovation Partnership with the US Treasury in June. Attendees exchanged views on cryptoasset regulation and market developments, including recent developments in relation to stablecoins and the exploration of central bank digital currencies (CBDCs).
The UK is also active in international work on cryptoassets being carried out through global fora, including the G7, G20, OECD, IMF and the Financial Stability Board (FSB).
Asked by: Lord Taylor of Warwick (Non-affiliated - Life peer)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what plans they have to create a bespoke regulatory framework for the UK cryptoasset sector.
Answered by Baroness Penn - Minister on Leave (Parliamentary Under Secretary of State)
At Fintech Week 2022, the Government set out our firm ambition to make Britain a global hub for cryptoasset technology and investment. The UK is committed to creating a regulatory environment in which firms can innovate, while crucially maintaining financial stability and regulatory standards so that people can use new technologies both reliably and safely.
The UK is taking a dynamic approach to engagement with the industry, and the government has committed to consult later this year on the broader regulation of cryptoassets, as part of a staged approach to developing a world-leading regime for cryptoasset activities.