Topic: UK Minister Says Cryptocurrencies Will Not be Regulated as Gambling (Read 109 times)

Yes, it's a great way for politicians to get away with financial crime, although they have plenty of ways to get away with their own.

Joking aside, I'm sure that politicians all over the world are secretly using Bitcoin to fund their clandestine activities.

Right! This way the UK politicians can keep on getting away with financial crimes using crypto.

Very funny, never tire of repeating this nonsense.

In my view it is a good thing that the UK government has refused to regulate cryptocurrency as a form of gambling rather than a financial service.

They're still going to regulate crypto, they're just not going to call it gambling. And how different is the regulatory framework between gambling and other assets? I've such nonsense before. This makes no difference in public policy.


Some countries force you to pay taxes if you sell the Bitcoin for a profit in exchange for anything, or if you convert from one currency to another. All those profits are subject to income or capital gains taxes.

If the UK wanted, they could just institute a higher tax for Bitcoin than other assets and it would cause less usage, the same goal as stringent regulations. Different paths to the same outcome.

This differs per country. We don't pay tax on buying or selling Bitcoin, but we're screwed with an annual wealth tax instead.

Which may actually be the case?

Regulation as gambling would be interesting tax-wise. Or even treating bitcoin and other crypto assets as currency for tax purposes or commodities for tax purposes. I am not a tax expert, but you can actually convert fiats without much of a tax if I am not wrong. It would be nice to do so with bitcoin IMO and benefit from those reductions in costs.

If crypto would be gambling, the entire stock and forex market would be gambling too.

It's always nice how they ignore the fact that fiat money has no intrinsic value either.

The UK Government has rejected calls from a parliamentary committee to regulate cryptocurrency as a form of gambling as opposed to a financial service.

Financial Secretary to the Treasury Andrew Griffith said:

“[Treating crypto trading as a form of gambling] would run completely counter to globally agreed recommendations from international organisations and standard-setting bodies, including the International Organisation of Securities Commissions and the G20 Financial Stability Board.”

The minister went on to add that treating crypto trading as gambling would fail to prevent the commingling of customer assets. It would also restrict the ability of financial regulators to oversee potential issues such as market manipulation and financial risk management practices.

Earlier this year, the Treasury Select Committee suggested that “unbacked” cryptocurrencies should be regulated as a form of gambling, given the significant risks posed to consumers.

In its report the committee stated that currencies such as bitcoin “have no intrinsic value and serve no useful social purpose” while consuming large amounts of energy. They noted that the digital currencies are also being used by criminals to launder money and hide the proceeds of crime.

However, the Treasury has now stated that it ‘firmly disagrees’ with this particular aspect of the report.

Griffith added:

“The committee’s proposed approach would risk creating misalignment with international standards and approaches from other major jurisdictions, including the EU, and potentially create unclear and overlapping mandates between financial regulators and the Gambling Commission.

HM Treasury and the Financial Conduct Authority will work with the industry to ensure crypto firms are made fully aware of the standards required for approval.”

Earlier this year the government outlined its plans to regulate the crypto industry, consistent with its approach to traditional finance. At the time Griffith said:

“We remain steadfast in our commitment to grow the economy and enable technological change and innovation – and this includes cryptoasset technology. But we must also protect consumers who are embracing this new technology – ensuring robust, transparent, and fair standards.”

via GamblingIndustryNews.com