UK Government Loses Lords Vote as Peers Back Digital Assets Strategy Amendment

News Editor

2026-09-11 17:28:32

The UK government was defeated in the House of Lords on Wednesday after peers voted 194 to 138 in favor of an amendment that would require the Treasury to produce a national strategy for digital assets. The proposal was introduced by Baroness Neville-Rolfe, a Conservative and former Treasury minister, as part of the Financial Services and Markets Bill. The proposed clause, titled Digital assets strategy, would require the Treasury to prepare, publish, and consult on a framework for regulating and developing digital assets and related digital financial market infrastructure in the UK. The draft says the scope would cover cryptoassets, qualifying stablecoins, Central Bank Digital Currencies, tokenized securities, and other digital and tokenized financial assets. The vote comes as the UK continues work on a broad crypto bill. The Financial Conduct Authority finalized its cryptoasset framework in June, with the regime set to take effect on Oct. 25, 2027. Its authorization gateway for firms opened on Sept. 30 and will remain available through Feb. 28, 2027. Bitcoin Magazine said the move highlights pressure on Britain as the EU and U.S. have already advanced major digital asset rules.

The UK government suffered a defeat in the House of Lords on Wednesday after peers backed an amendment requiring the Treasury to draw up a national strategy for regulating digital assets.

UK Government Loses Lords Vote as Peers Back Digital Assets Strategy Amendment 2

The upper chamber approved the measure by 194 votes to 138. Conservative and Liberal Democrat peers voted together against a near-solid bloc of Labour votes.

Baroness Neville-Rolfe, a Conservative and former Treasury minister, moved the amendment to the Financial Services and Markets Bill.

Treasury would be required to prepare a digital assets strategy

The proposed new clause is titled Digital assets strategy. It would require the Treasury to prepare, publish, and consult on a strategy for regulating and developing digital assets and related digital financial market infrastructure in the UK.

Under the draft, regulation of digital assets would include cryptoassets, qualifying stablecoins, Central Bank Digital Currencies, tokenized securities, and other digital and tokenized financial assets.

UK crypto legislation is still taking shape

The vote comes as the UK is drafting a broad new crypto bill.

The Financial Conduct Authority finalized its regulatory framework for cryptoassets in June. That regime is due to take effect on Oct. 25, 2027. The authorization gateway for firms opened on Sept. 30 and runs through Feb. 28, 2027.

Britain is behind the EU and U.S. on digital asset rules

Bitcoin Magazine said Britain is trailing Brussels and Washington in digital asset regulation.

The European Union's Markets in Crypto-Assets regulation has applied to service providers since Dec. 30, 2024.

In the United States, President Donald Trump signed the GENIUS Act into law in July 2025, creating a federal framework for dollar-backed tokens.

Broader market-structure legislation in the U.S. remains unfinished. The Clarity Act passed the House in July 2025 by a 294-134 vote, but it has remained stuck in the Senate over DeFi, stablecoin yield, and ethics provisions. A procedural vote is scheduled for next week.

This report first appeared in Bitcoin Magazine and was written by Mathew Di Salvo.

This article was originally published by Bit.Fan. For more cryptocurrency news and market insights, visit www.bit.fan.

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