While Bitcoin and Ethereum are trying to hold near their weekly lows, following a substantial correction observed since May 4, the UK government is battling the Treasury Committee over how to regulate the cryptocurrency industry in the country. "Investing in unbacked digital assets like Bitcoin and Ethereum resembles gambling and should be regulated as such," stated a cross-party group of lawmakers in the UK who are part of the UK Treasury Committee. However, the government sticks to its regulatory plans.
Lately, the Treasury Committee has repeatedly expressed concerns that the government's proposals regarding the cryptocurrency industry will make consumers believe that this activity is safe and protected when it's not. As early as July of the previous year, the aforementioned committee initiated an investigation to gather opinions from stakeholders and other regulatory bodies. The UK government also requested industry representatives to share their thoughts on the proposed rules for local regulation of the crypto industry.
After consultations, the government stated that it is necessary to regulate the cryptocurrency industry by extending existing rules applicable to financial markets. The Treasury Committee has expressed concern about this plan.
"With no intrinsic value, huge price volatility and no discernible social good, consumer trading of cryptocurrencies like bitcoin more closely resembles gambling than a financial service, and should be regulated as such," said Harriett Baldwin, member of Parliament and chair of the Treasury Committee. "By betting on these unbacked 'tokens,' consumers should be aware that all their money could be lost."
However, those who support the crypto industry in the treasury are standing their ground: "Risks posed by crypto are typical of those that exist in traditional financial services and it's financial services regulation, rather than gambling regulation," said a representative of the Ministry of Finance. "Crypto offer opportunities but we are taking an agile approach to robustly regulating the market, addressing the most pressing risks first in a way that promotes innovation."
Crypto advocates also disagree with the committee's call to regulate cryptocurrencies like gambling. "Modern regulated economies must confront and engage with the evolution of finance, and develop a sophisticated regulatory regime which is not achieved by dismissing crypto investment as gambling," Richard Cannon, a partner at British Stokoe Partnership Solicitors, stated in his declaration.
As for today's technical picture of Bitcoin, we can only talk about continued growth in the current conditions after defending the $27,000 level. Only this will give a chance to build a bull market with the prospect of updating $29,000. The farthest target will be the $31,000 area, where quite a large profit-taking and a Bitcoin pullback downwards may occur. If the pressure on the trading instrument persists, the focus will be on defending $27,000, and then $25,500. Its breakthrough will be a blow to the asset, opening a direct path to $23,900. Breaking this level will "drop" the world's first cryptocurrency to around $22,580.
Ethereum buyers are now focused on defending the nearest support at $1,800 and regaining resistance at $1,920. Only after this can we expect to reach $2,030, which will allow the bull trend to continue and lead to a new Ethereum surge towards $2,130. If the pressure on ETH returns, the $1,800 level will come into play, the breakthrough of which will lead to a test of $1,690. Below, the $1,640 area is in sight. Its breakthrough will push the trading instrument to a low of $1,570.
