Crypto Breakthrough: King Charles Approves New Crypto Property Law
A bill that treats digital assets like cryptocurrencies and stablecoins as property has been approved into law in the UK. Proponents claim that this action will better safeguard cryptocurrency users. On Tuesday, Lord Speaker John McFall informed the House of Lords that the Property (Digital Assets, etc.) Bill had been approved by the monarch. This indicates that it has been formally approved by King Charles and is now a law. The bill’s enactment is a huge step forward for Bitcoin in the UK, according to Freddie New, policy chief at advocacy group Bitcoin Policy UK, who spoke on X. It is also an important step for all those who possess and utilize it in the nation, he continued.
UK Law Now Clearly Recognizes Digital Assets as Property
Judges’ rulings have established that digital assets are property under UK common law. Nonetheless, the Law Commission of England and Wales’ 2024 advice was intended to be codified by the bill. For clarity, this suggestion suggests classifying cryptocurrency as a new type of personal property.
UK courts have already treated digital assets as property, but that was all through case-by-case judgments. Parliament has now written this principle into law. This gives digital assets a much clearer legal footing — especially for things like proving ownership, recovering stolen assets, and handling them in insolvency or estate cases,
the advocacy group CryptoUK
The bill affirms that digital or electronic things can be objects of personal property rights, according to CryptoUK. According to UK law, personal property can be divided into two categories: tangible property, like a vehicle, is referred to as a thing in possession. A thing in action, or intangible property, such as the authority to enforce a contract, falls into the second category. According to the bill, a thing that is digital or electronic in nature falls under the purview of personal property rights. In its 2024 report, the Law Commission contended that digital assets can have characteristics of both categories, even if they are neither a thing in possession nor a thing in action.
UK Establishes Legal Foundation for Cryptocurrency Transfers
According to CryptoUK on X, the law provides investors and consumers with more clarity and protection. The law gives cryptocurrency owners the same assurance and certainty they anticipate with other types of property, it further stated.
Digital assets can be clearly owned, recovered in cases of theft or fraud, and included within insolvency and estate processes,
CryptoUK
The group also stated that there is now a clear legal foundation for cryptocurrency ownership and transfer in the UK. According to them, this framework will facilitate the expansion of tokenized real-world assets and new financial products. They added that it will make digital marketplaces safer.
For more up-to-date crypto news, you can follow Crypto Data Space.
