UK to be ‘safe harbor’ for crypto with new draft policies – experts

On April 29, 2025, UK finance minister Rachel Reeves opened plans for a “comprehensive regulatory regulation” aimed at making the country a global leader in digital ownership.
Under are the proposed policies. Says In a statement released following Reeves’ statements.
Each statement, the Financial Services and Markets Act 2000 (Cryptoassets) Order 2025 introduces six newly regulated activities, including crypto trading, caution, and staking.
Instead of selecting a light-touch regime similar to EU Crypto-Assets markets (MICA)The UK applied the full weight of security regulation to crypto, According to to the UK -based firm Wiggin. This includes capital requirements, management standards, market abuse rules, and disclosure obligations.
“The UK crypto regulations represent a significant step towards embracing a policy based on the digital asset of the digital asset,” Dante Disparte, chief official strategy and head of global circle policy, told the cointelegraph.
“By signing a willingness to provide clarity of regulation, the UK is positioning itself as a safe port for responsible change.”
The dispute added that the proposed framework could provide the predictable necessary to “scale the responsible digital financial infrastructure in the UK.”
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New UK crypto policies are “net positive”
Vugar Usi Zade, the Chief Operating Officer (COO) at the Bitget Exchange, also announced optimization about new regulations, claiming it was “a net positive” for the industry.
“I think many companies recently came out or hesitant to enter the UK because they were not clear about what activities, products, and operations require FCA permission. Finally get clear definitions of” qualified crypto assets “and know exactly which activities -care, care, care or lending -FCA’s required permission.”
For exchanges, including Bitget, UK draft policies mean they need full approval from the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) to offer crypto trading, caution, staking, or lending services to UK users.
The policies of companies also provide two years to adjust their systems, such as capital and reporting. “Mamaping each service line in the new perimeter increases compliance with overhead, but this clarity allows us to plan a roll product and invest in local infrastructure,” Zade said.
New draft regulations result in stablecoins as security, not as E-money. This means that back-fiats to tokens must meet prospectus-style disclosure and redemption protocols. Non-UK stablecoins can still be circulated, but only through authorized areas.
Zade claimed to exclude stablecoins from electronic money regulations 2011 (EMRs), which prevented them from E – Money Sandbox, could slow their use for payment.
However, disparte, whose firm was the one who gave the USDC (USDC), the second largest stablecoin by market capitalization, said the unpredictable is key to strengthening responsible growth in the UK.
“Most important is predictable: a framework that gives companies to build, try, and grow responsibly -without fear of an unjust implementation or transfer of goalposts. If realized, it can be marked with an important moment in the journey of the UK digital asset.”
Related: UK regulator moves to tighten borrowing for crypto investments
UK to require FCA approved for foreign crypto companies
Among the biggest changes as part of the new draft policies are territorial reach. Non-UK platforms serving clients in the UK retail will need FCA permission. The exclusion of “foreign people” is limited to some B2B relationships, which effectively rings fencing the UK retail market.
Crypto staking also enters the perimeter. Liquid and delegated staking services should be registered today, while solo stakers and concentrated interface -based interfaces are free. New caution policies reach any Party’s unilateral transfer rights, including some lending organizations and MPC (Multiparty Computation).
“Some defi nuances still need fleshing out, but the direction is heading to great, according to compliance rather than restricting the blanket,” Zade said Bitget.
He added that the extensive “staking” definition can be sweating in non -defi models of illnesses that lack a central provider. “The suggested restrictions on buying credit – even aimed at high risk use – can relieve retail participation in the token launch,” he said.
Additionally, Zade said bank separation rules for client assets could bear the defi projects. “The last tweaks of the rule will need to ease these side effects.”
The FCA Plan to publish final policies In Crypto once in 2026, which sets the basis for the UK regulatory regime to survive. Roadmap in greater clarity of regulation in the UK may follow the European Union, which began to be implemented Its mica framework in December.
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