UK Lords Demand National Crypto Strategy Amid Global Regulatory Rush
The UK's House of Lords has voted to require the Treasury to produce a national digital-assets strategy, defeating the government in a vote of 194-138. The amendment, introduced by Conservative former Treasury minister Baroness Neville-Rolfe, will force the Treasury to draft and publish a plan for regulating cryptoassets, stablecoins, central bank digital currencies, and tokenized securities within 12 months.
The proposed strategy must consider access to banking, payment, and settlement services, as well as risks to competition and innovation when those services are withdrawn. This move comes as the UK government has recently given the nod for the Bank of England to support innovation in payments, including stablecoins and other digital settlement methods.
The FCA has already finalized rules and guidance for its new cryptoasset regime, which will take effect on October 25, 2027. However, the Lords' amendment calls for a broader national strategy tying together regulation, tokenization, payments infrastructure, and UK competitiveness.