Former British Chancellor Philip Hammond has warned that the UK will lose its competitive advantage in financial services if it does not step up its efforts in the field of cryptocurrency.
According to Philip: the UK has less than a year to catch up, otherwise, it will lose its leadership in global financial services. Lord Hammond, who stepped down as chancellor in 2019 and is now a member of the House of Lords, says he is very surprised that the UK has been outpaced by other financial centers, such as the European Union, which has already begun work on a framework for regulating digital assets.
Cryptocurrency could give London a unique advantage after Brexit, Hammond says.
Hammond recently joined the London digital asset community as an advisor. The company serves more than 400 institutional clients, owning and trading cryptocurrencies on their behalf.
Philip Hammond also hopes that the UK will catch up by 2022.
And he noted that cryptocurrency companies are considering moving their headquarters to jurisdictions that are even more advanced in regulation, such as Switzerland, Monaco, and Germany.
The UK is in the process of tightening the screws on digital assets, and the Bank of England has repeatedly called for the creation of a regulatory framework to protect customers from unsecured cryptocurrencies.
In January, the Financial Supervision Authority published draft rules restricting the advertising of crypto assets to an audience of experienced investors, and promotions include warnings that assets are not regulated.
The former chancellor said that cryptocurrency assets could give London a unique competitive advantage after Brexit.