Every summer, elite tennis players, fans, and broadcasters converge on London for the Wimbledon Championships, which is considered the world’s most prestigious tennis tournament. This is not just due to its century-long history; for years, the All England Lawn Tennis Club has successfully upheld tradition whilst embracing new technology.
From pioneering Hawk-Eye's electronic line-calling system, to producing on-demand and social content, or immersing viewers through VR and AR technologies, each initiative has contributed to maintaining its aura and enduring the Championship’s appeal.
Taking Wimbledon’s lead, London is well-positioned to become the global capital of crypto.
The UK is already Europe's largest crypto economy and ranks third globally (according to a recent Chainalysis report). Despite this strong start, there is much to do for London to continue on this path, and to not fall behind other financial centres. Just recently, EY reported that France has been recognised as the most attractive European destination for foreign direct investment.
To capitalise on crypto’s potential, and to attract top talent, investment and innovation from across the world, the UK must bear three things in mind:
Debunk crypto myths, increase education
Too often, crypto is myopically framed as a speculative asset plagued by fraud and money laundering, rather than a transformative economic engine. Data from compliance firms like TRM Labs indicates illicit transactions were around 0.63% of total crypto volumes in 2022, compared to 2-5% for traditional fiat currencies. These negative perceptions are compounded by the speed of crypto’s innovation, making it difficult for policymakers, and even industry practitioners, to keep up with blockchain technology and what it can do.
So what needs to happen? Engagement between industry and policymakers in London has been positive, but focused on regulation, and now it’s time to take it one step further. I would strongly encourage decision makers to get hands-on experience, alongside deep, ongoing engagement with crypto builders to truly understand the technology and its vast potential.
We must also prepare the next generation with the right skills: the UK leads the way in global higher education, but currently only one top-20 university offers blockchain-related courses. Young people are showing an interest in crypto technology but we must ensure the curriculum is continuously modernised to create pathways for the next developers, innovators and business leaders to fully harness the promises of this technology.
Bridge the banking divide
A report from OnRamper revealed that over 25% of attempts to buy crypto with Pounds (including through FCA-registered exchanges like Kraken) can fail. Based on our analysis and industry reporting, this is often due to restrictive policies by major banks, citing policies related to "fraud prevention". This blanket approach deprives UK customers, removing their choice to engage with crypto, and at best creates an artificial ceiling. Ironically, some banks have less friction to guard against Authorised Push Payment (APP) fraud - an area where actual fraud prevention is sorely needed and banks will soon carry 50% liability. This needs to change.
Further still, (at least for the time being) crypto businesses need traditional banking services, like current accounts and cash management, to operate. But too often it is a challenge for them to get that. Other global hubs like Hong Kong and France have implemented clear measures to ensure regulated crypto firms have access to banking services, realising that prohibiting relationships with crypto would severely hinder their ambitions in this space.
The UK should avoid this double-fault which would undermine investment and development efforts.
Regulating crypto: think global, differentiate local
There’s an opportunity for the UK to take a clear stance now, and replace the “control and contain” mentality that has been applied to crypto. Currently when determining policies to regulate the City, decision makers consider the broader societal impacts such as “will this rule result in banks lending less?” or “will this affect our Pensions?”.
The same mindset must be applied to crypto for the UK to maximise the opportunity: What can we borrow from other markets, and how can we differentiate our approach to attract more innovators to London and the rest of the UK? How can we allow decentralised finance to flourish, while also ensuring that people are sufficiently protected? These are broader regulatory and economic questions that have both technological and societal impacts.
The City has repeatedly redrawn its regulatory contours to lead transformative trends - pioneering everything from 17th century bond trading to 20th century electronic execution systems. And just as Wimbledon confidently evolves while preserving tradition, London can nurture crypto innovation if it remains open, collaborative, and ambitious.
The path forward is clear; ceding jurisdictional leadership now would be an unforced error.
