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UK government Passes Law Recognising Cryptocurrency and stablecoins As Personal Property

The UK government has passed a new law that explicitly acknowledges digital assets such as cryptocurrencies and stablecoins as private property. This means that cryptocurrency now enjoys the same legal protection as other types of assets.

Why This Law Matters

Until now, the UK lacked a precise legal definition for cryptocurrency. Courts frequently treated digital assets such as Bitcoin and USDT as property based on individual judgements, but nothing was put into law.

With King Charles’ royal consent to the new legislation, digital assets now have a solid legal basis. This will make it easier to deal with cryptocurrency in judicial proceedings, financial systems, and company operations.

A New Category of Property

The Property (Digital Assets, etc) Bill, proposed in September 2024, establishes a third category of personal property exclusively for digital assets.

Previously, property in the UK fell into two categories:

  • Things you can physically hold.
  • Rights or claims (as in debts)

The new category assures that digital assets are legally protected, even if they do not fit into established categories.

What the Law Helps With

According to CryptoUK, this update will help:

  • Prove ownership of digital assets.
  • Recover stolen or lost cryptocurrency.
  • Handle cryptocurrency during insolvency or inheritance proceedings.

This increases consumer and investor confidence when dealing with digital assets.

Support for Innovation

The bill is also projected to promote innovation in the UK’s digital and tokenisation sectors by creating a more defined legal framework for enterprises and investors.

Global Trend Other countries are likewise heading in this path.

Russia is working on legislation to define cryptocurrency as property that may be seized in criminal proceedings. India’s high court recently decided that bitcoins are considered property under Indian law.


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