UK wants to finalize crypto legislation by 2026, FCA unveils regulatory roadmap
Under former Prime Minister Rishi Sunak, Britain took several steps to promote the growth of the Web3 sector, positioning itself to compete with Dubai and Hong Kong as a leading Web3 hub. In a recent update, the UK Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) set a deadline of 2026 to finalize its crypto legislation.
The FCA’s proposed regulations will focus on ensuring a fair, transparent marketplace for crypto assets, free from manipulation and exploitation. These rules will apply to crypto exchanges, digital asset lending providers and stablecoin operators in the UK Bloomberg report said.
Matthew Long, director of payments and digital assets at the FCA, has published a notice on the official website detailing the roadmap for FCA’s crypto rules.
“We want our regime to take into account the unique characteristics of crypto and deliver results in the best interests of the customer. That’s why we came together to discuss what a future regime should look like for trading platforms and intermediaries – exploring topics such as location policies, operational resilience requirements, conflicts of interest and matching and order execution.”
Throughout this year, the FCA has participated in several roundtable discussions to gather input from investors and regulators on the necessary crypto regulations.
According to the FCA, the discussions showed there is a strong interest in differentiating crypto regulations for wholesale and retail use. The topic of international standards for crypto activities also received a lot of attention. The FCA believes that establishing a uniform global regulation for the crypto sector could help reduce the regulatory burden on individual countries.
“Participants felt that exchanges that issue their own tokens or conduct other activities such as brokerage and market making pose the greatest conflicts of interest. While there is still work to be done, we are leading the implementation of international crypto regulatory standards through the International Organization of Securities Commissions (IOSCO),” Long added.
The crypto sector is currently valued at $3.21 trillion (approximately Rs. 2,71,09,156 crore), with Bitcoin hitting all-time highs close to $100,000 (approximately Rs. 84 lakh). The rise in crypto prices follows Donald Trump’s return to the White House as the 47th US president. During his campaign, Trump suggested that the US could designate Bitcoin as a reserve asset, similar to gold.
Given the current uncertainty surrounding crypto regulations in the US, Britain appears to be accelerating efforts to finalize its laws, with the aim of regulating and legitimizing the crypto sector in preparation for future global developments.
