House of Lords Compels HM Treasury to Develop Comprehensive Crypto Strategy

The UK's House of Lords has passed an amendment requiring HM Treasury to develop a formal strategy covering crypto assets, stablecoins, and digital financial infrastructure. This move signals that the Lords view the UK's current positioning in the global crypto race as insufficient, with peers openly citing concerns about falling behind the US and EU.

The amendment compels the Treasury to produce a cohesive strategy rather than continuing to regulate digital assets in a piecemeal fashion. The scope is broad: crypto assets, stablecoins, tokenized securities, and digital financial infrastructure all fall under its umbrella.

In June 2026, the Financial Services Regulation Committee published a report that laid the groundwork for this push, urging regulators to ease up on stablecoins. The Bank of England partially listened, issuing a policy statement in September 2026 refining its approach to systemic stablecoins. The new backing structure requires 70% in short-term UK government debt and 30% in unremunerated BoE deposits.