The United Kingdom is late in the digital asset market, especially in the field of stablecoins, despite the potential of technology to help the country preserve its leading role in global financial services.
It was a central message in a recent Financial time OP-ED by George Osborne, the former British chancellor who became cryptographic lobbyist, who joined Coinbase as an advisor last year.
“What I see makes me anxious. Far from being an early adopter, we allowed ourselves to be left behind,” wrote Osborne, referring to his native United Kingdom.
A key concern for Osborne is slow progress on stablescoins – the onchain representations of fiduciary currencies that help reduce friction in transactions and sending of cross -border funds.
London’s position as a global financial center, he argued, stems from its desire to adopt innovation-an attitude which it has almost abandoned.
“On the crypto and the stablecoins, as on too many other things, the harsh truth is as follows: we are completely left behind. It’s time to catch up,” Osborne wrote.
While the United States advances legislation such as engineering law to strengthen the role of the dollar as a dominant global reserve currency, Osborne has warned that the inaction of the British government “guarantees that the book will not even play a support role”, highlighting the overwhelming green tank on the stable market.
It is an important setback, given that the Sterling book ranks among the first five most negotiated currencies in the world, according to the bank for international establishments.
Osborne’s opinion was a scathing criticism of the current Chancellor Rachel Reeves, who, he noted, did not follow his promise to take daring measures on the Stablecoins.
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The controversy of the satirical sparks of Coinbase AD of Coinbase
Osborne’s opinion followed the release of a provocative musical advertisement by Coinbase, the company he advises, which criticized the United Kingdom for its poor economic management and its continuous crisis of the cost of living.
Entitled “Everything is well”, the announcement satire the dark state of the country, perhaps as a means of highlighting the potential of cryptography as an alternative generators of wealth.
“If all is well, then do not change anything at all. But when the financial system does not work for as many people in the United Kingdom, it must be updated,” wrote Coinbase in a YouTube legend accompanying the announcement.
CEO of Coinbase, Brian Armstrong, said last week that the announcement was prohibited by the main British television networks. However, CNBC said that he could not independently check the complaint on Monday.
Although it is difficult to quantify precisely, Coinbase was a major player in American cryptography lobbying, especially in 2024, when he paid millions of dollars in efforts during a Pivot electoral year, according to Opensecrets.
As politico reported, the company began to lobby more than a decade ago and has since considerably increased its efforts. In fact, the publication noted that Coinbase had spent more for lobbying than any other cryptography company.
Her latest advertising campaign and OP-ED of Osborne suggest that the company refocuses its attention on the United Kingdom-a market which it first participated in 2015.
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