Pro-Crypto Rishi Sunak Takes Office as UK Prime Minister
Britain’s former Chancellor of the Exchequer and Chief Secretary to the Treasury, Rishi Sunak, has become the country’s new Prime Minister, succeeding Liz Truss, who resigned after 44 days in office. The leader of the Conservative Party had earlier said, "It’s my ambition to make the UK a global hub for crypto asset technology."
Could Rishi Sunak Make the UK a Global Crypto Hub?
Rishi
Sunak, who served as Britain’s Chancellor of the Exchequer from 2020 to 2022
and Chief Secretary to the Treasury from 2019 to 2022, has been appointed as
the Prime Minister of the UK. He has succeeded Liz Truss, who resigned
after 44 days in office as Prime Minister.
Sunak
formally accepted his new role from King Charles during a meeting at Buckingham
Palace on Monday after winning the Conservative Party leadership.
Many
people have called Sunak pro-crypto for his efforts to make Britain "a
global hub for crypto asset technology and investment," as announced by
the UK government in April. He had said,
"It’s
my ambition to make the UK a global hub for crypto asset technology, and the
measures we’ve outlined today will help to ensure firms can invest, innovate,
and scale up in this country."
The
British government also affirmed that it will "see stablecoins recognized
as a valid form of payment as part of wider plans to make Britain a global hub
for crypto asset technology and investment." Moreover, the government
noted that it "will explore ways of enhancing the competitiveness of the
UK tax system to encourage further development of the crypto asset market in
the UK." Sunak also commissioned the Royal Mint to create a non-fungible
token (NFT).
"We
want to see the businesses of tomorrow, and the jobs they create, here in the
UK, and by regulating effectively we can give them the confidence they need to
think and invest long-term," Sunak had opined. "This is part of our
plan to ensure the UK financial services industry is always at the forefront of
technology and innovation."
Sunak
also said in January:
"Crypto
assets can provide exciting new opportunities, offering people new ways to
transact and invest but it’s important that consumers are not being sold
products with misleading claims. We are ensuring that consumers are protected
while also supporting the innovation of the crypto asset
market." ‘
However,
the new Prime Minister is also pro-Central Bank Digital Currencies (CBDCs),
which has caused concerns among some crypto advocates. In October last year,
he explained how CBDCs could benefit businesses and
consumers as the G7 issued a report on the subject. Sunak also set up a task
force to work on a central bank digital currency.
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