Digital crypto assets considered property in Britain

Britain’s cryptocurrency industry has received a significant boost during the week as lawmakers have classified digital assets as property. This will make it easier for businesses to start using blockchain tokens and increase their efforts into the development of blockchain and crypto solutions. Several news outlets in the United Kingdom reported on the legal statement from senior High Court judge Sir Geoffrey Vos.

The lawmakers stated that crypto assets have everything in them that would qualify them as property, and thus they need a similar legal standing. The group added that ‘novel or distinctive features possessed by some crypto-assets — intangibility, cryptographic authentication, use of a distributed transaction ledger, decentralisation, rule by consensus — do not disqualify them from being property’.

The true impact of the court’s decision will become clear in the coming months. In potential this can serve as a foundation for mainstream adoption of cryptocurrencies and blockchain technology. In addition blockchain start-ups could benefit as well. This also means that stealing and scamming in the world of cryptocurrencies is now considered a theft by law.

Business potential of blockchain

Britain clearly doesn’t want to stay behind. A government-backed industry initiative called Lawtech has been investigating blockchain for months. Director Jenifer Swallow stated that the worldwide smart contract market will be worth $300 million in 2023. The World Economic Forum even predicts ten percent of the global GDP to be locked in smart contracts on the blockchain by 2027. No wonder countries want to be involved in this business.

Other countries are also making big steps into this direction. China’s president pushed the country into a true blockchain hype. State media are now educating people about blockchain, as the country wants to be at the forefront of the blockchain revolution. China plans to launch a national digital currency in the next twelve months.

At the same time other countries are also embracing blockchain. South Korea wants to move its trade business onto the blockchain, saving billions of dollars per year. While Turkey has already announced a national digital currency, and is moving some government services onto the blockchain.

European Central Bank wants digital euro

While the United States are more busy with China, Europe is slowly moving into the direction of a digital euro. The European Central Bank (ECB) is considering to issue a digital version of its euro, while also creating a framework that would ban high-risk cryptocurrency projects.

The ECB will work together with national central banks from within the European Union in order to develop this digital euro. These efforts from the European Central Bank could make banking intermediaries obsolete as the electronic cash would be stored at the central bank directly. These plans can be approved on December 5th at the earliest.

Originally published at NEDEROB.