UK Finally Gets Serious About Crypto With New Rules

For years, the United Kingdom has talked about becoming a leading place for cryptocurrency (digital money that exists only online, like Bitcoin). Now, it looks like the country is finally taking real action.

Two of the UK's most powerful financial bodies have made big moves. These are the FCA (Financial Conduct Authority — the government agency that watches over financial companies to protect consumers) and the Bank of England (the UK's central bank, which manages the country's money system).

Here's what they did:

• The FCA finalized new crypto rules, giving clear guidance on how crypto companies should operate, how much money they need to keep in reserve, and what they must tell customers.
• The Bank of England relaxed its restrictions on stablecoins (cryptocurrencies designed to hold a steady value by being tied to regular money like the pound or dollar).
• The Bank lowered the reserve requirement for stablecoin issuers from 40% to 30% (meaning companies that create stablecoins don't need to hold as much backup money at the central bank).

Why does this matter? Earlier proposals from November 2025 were seen as too strict. The old plan would have limited individuals to holding just £20,000 in certain stablecoins, and businesses to £10 million. Many in the industry said these caps were too tight and would hold the UK back from competing globally.

By easing these rules, the UK is sending a strong signal: it wants to attract both everyday users and big financial institutions (large companies like banks and investment firms) to use crypto within its borders.

The bottom line: Since former Prime Minister Rishi Sunak announced UK ambitions to be a "global crypto hub" back in 2022, progress has been slow. But these recent changes suggest the UK is now serious about turning that dream into reality — creating clearer, friendlier rules for the crypto world.

This is an AI-generated summary. Read the original article at: https://www.coindesk.com/opinion/2026/07/11/the-uk-has-finally-shown-it-s-serious-about-crypto