Financial Services And Markets Bill Approved By UK Lords

The upper house of the UK Parliament, the House of Lords, has approved the Financial Services and Markets Bill (FSMB), which aims to regulate crypto activities and recognize stablecoins as a form of payment within the existing legal framework.

The bill, introduced in July to leverage Brexit opportunities and enhance regulatory authority over the UK financial system, has now entered its final stages before becoming law.

Originally designed to regulate stablecoins under local payment regulations, the bill has undergone amendments during its progression through Parliament. These amendments expanded its scope to include the regulation of all cryptocurrencies as regulated activities and the implementation of measures to supervise crypto promotions.

The UK government intends for the FSMB to empower regulators to establish comprehensive crypto regulations, a subject the Treasury has been consulting on. Specific rules for the crypto industry could be introduced within a year, according to Andrew Griffith, the Economic Secretary to the Treasury.

The UK is striving to catch up with the European Union, which recently finalized its regulatory framework for crypto assets, with a particular focus on stablecoins. The next step involves sending the FSMB back to the lower house of Parliament to agree on the final version.

Once both houses reach a consensus, the bill will be sent for approval to the monarch and subsequently enacted into law. The bill may undergo multiple rounds of revisions between the two chambers of Parliament until an agreement is reached.