UK minister expects Stablecoin and staking legislation within six months: Bloomberg

A U.K. minister has signaled a fresh commitment to introduce stablecoin and other crypto-related legislation to the country this year.

Economic Secretary to the Treasury Bim Afolami said that the U.K. government was "pushing very hard” to bring legislation around stablecoins and crypto staking services within the next six months, according to a Bloomberg report.

“We’re very clear that we want to get these things done as soon as possible. And I think over the next six months, those things are doable,” said Afolami, speaking at an event hosted by cryptocurrency exchange Coinbase in London on Monday.

In October 2023, The Bank of England and the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) announced broad plans for overseeing the crypto sector in a coordinated fashion. The timeline for stablecoin rules indicated a consultation on final rules by mid-2024 and implementation of the stablecoin regime by 2025, CoinDesk reported.

Afolami’s statement suggests the U.K. is marching ahead to bring crypto regulation in the election year. The governing Conservatives are behind in the polls to the Labour Party and could be under pressure to gain political mileage by passing specific legislation.

Asked about a timeline on broader crypto regulation beyond stablecoins and staking, Afolami said he didn’t know and that “There’s just a huge amount going on, so I don’t want to commit to that now.”