tl;dr

The ninth of the nine NFKs. MiCA allows the EU to leave the UK far behind in the quest for crypto tax dollars, but there is a delightfully simple solution which must surely appeal to Sir Keir Granny Harmer Starmer.

Market Snap

Market Wrap

Another near $1bn spot BTC ETF inflows yesterday following on from Friday’s fine performance is hopefully setting the trend for 2025. Powell’s end-of-year clumsy attempt to roil the crypto markets has been and gone, and good riddance.

These strong inflows will likely continue up to 20th January, in expectation of some market-moving news, of which the most delightful will be the creation of a US Bitcoin Strategic Reserve. Many investors, retail and institutional, remain less fleet of foot, waiting for the announcement itself. That wouldn’t be my approach – such risk aversion makes those investors eminently unsuitable for crypto markets.

This does of course mean that there is a risk that 20th January becomes a sell the news event. We shall soon find out.

Occasional Series – Project K:  Roundabout. NFK 9 of 9

https://www.curiouscryptos.com/projectk

Curious Cryptos’ Commentary – MiCA

MiCA – Markets in Capital Assets – is the EU’s global standard bearer for crypto regulation which came into force on December 30th, 2024. Or at least in parts of the EU, for there are some countries still dragging their feet including Belgium, Italy, Poland, Portugal, Luxembourg, and Romania.

The Netherlands is straight onto the case, awarding EU-wide crypto licenses to four firms – MoonPay. BitStaete, FinTech ZBD, and Hidden Road. Ivan Soto-Wright, CEO and co-founder of MoonPay, is pleased:

“MiCA represents a pivotal moment for the European digital asset industry, and we’re proud to have worked collaboratively with the Dutch AFM to be among the first to embrace this new regulatory framework.”

Malta has awarded recognition to Socios.com. We can expect an ongoing cascade of licenses to be awarded over the next few months and years, all of which will drive inward investment, create new businesses, and provide loads of lovely tax dollars for politicians to fritter away on their pet projects.

…

The UK is nowhere.

The last government told blatant lies about its plans for the crypto industry. Rishi Sunak and Jeremy “not my real surname but this is a family friendly publication” Hunt destroyed what little integrity they had left with the lies they spouted about supporting cryptos.

Similar claims are being made by the current government. Just recently, Tulip Siddiq, Parliamentary Secretary, made this astonishing statement:

“This includes our ambition to make the UK a global hub for securities tokenisation”.

You will surely excuse my scepticism at this point in time about her real intentions. Anyway, as Minister with responsibility for ensuring financial propriety in public life, she will not be in her job for long after the recent (alleged) revelations of the assets she has acquired at the expense of Bangladeshi citizens via a $4bn fraud committed by her relatives. It will be more important to hear what her successor says.

But I remain a little confused as to why the UK hasn’t simply adopted MiCA.

We do after all have decades of experience of cutting and pasting EU laws and regulations into our own, often with additional gold-plating seemingly designed to put UK business at a competitive disadvantage. Sir Keir Farmer Harmer Starmer has made no secret of his desire to take the UK back into the EU regulatory orbit. Whether you agree with his ambition or not (and I do recognise that there are strong emotions on both sides) simply importing MiCA today would send a very strong signal to the EU that Sir Keir Free Gear Starmer is deadly serious about his intentions, and has a decent shot at taking the UK back into Europe. Once he concedes free movement of young people – reportedly a given – then adding MiCA into the mix, setting a precedent for accepting EU rules despite no requirement to do so, would surely land him a very plum job in the upper echelons of the EU technocracy immediately after he is forced out from his current post.

Implementing MiCA in the UK would be a major step forward for the UK’s crypto industry. Will Two-Tier Keir have the courage to face down the naysayers in exchange for a tax-free cushy job, and the fattest pension imaginable, with no risk of ever facing the electorate, or of being fired? He has the CCC’s support if he does. Go on, you can do it, Keir!