Ex-London Stock Exchange Chief Says UK Should Embrace Crypto Post-Brexit

Xavier Rolet, the former CEO of London Stock Exchange, has called on the U.K. government to position itself to capitalize on the cryptocurrency boom and attract the “best brains” to help prepare policies around the tech.

A blog post co-authored by Rolet, now the non-executive chairman of Shore Capital Markets, states that, in the post-Brexit era, the U.K. government needs to understand cryptocurrencies in order to place City of London and the nation at the center of a “reputable and safe” financial market. 

“Doing so will not be easy, none of this stuff is, but it is essential to be well-positioned, otherwise the cryptocurrency market will pass the UK by,” warns the post.

Co-written by Shore Capital Markets senior political adviser Matthew Elliott and Dr. Clive Black, head of research at the firm, it also highlights the advancing adopting of digital assets.

“Cryptocurrency is not going away and whilst self-serving entrepreneurs like Elon Musk are reverse broking the instrument, the fact is that important institutions of the state (e.g., China) and commerce (e.g., Mastercard and BNY Mellon) are now embracing crypto-currency,” they write.

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Providing U.K. regulators can develop a shared global regulatory framework in conjunction with global central banks, “it is a good example of a policy area where [post-Brexit] independence allows us to be more agile,” per the post.

The authors add that any new regulation needs to be combined with a “functioning new immigration platform to attract and keep the best global talent in the U.K.”