The UK government is canceling the Royal Mint NFT collection originally planned for summer 2022. This decision was made in part by the UK Treasury and announced earlier this month by Treasury Economic Secretary Andrew Griffith. Why did the UK cancel the Royal Mint NFT project?
Image Credit: Royal Mint
Why did the UK cancel the Royal Mint NFT project?
Many legislators have questioned the legitimacy of the bill since its proposal in April 2022. Some opponents have gone so far as to express skepticism about the inherent value of the NFT technology itself. For example, Harriet Baldwin, chair of the Treasury Select Committee, warned: “We still haven’t seen much evidence that our constituents should put their money into these speculative tokens unless they are prepared to lose all their money.”
Critics also pointed to recent events in the crypto market as a cause for concern. The industry is still reeling from the FTX implosion amid widespread fraud in which the cryptocurrency company embezzled $10 billion of client funds. As a result, many government agencies are vowing to take a bigger role in regulating grow space.
The idea of the UK government selling crypto assets to citizens further complicates regulatory issues. Many argue that the government should be in charge of regulating crypto assets, not selling them. If the government starts to profit from the sale of NFTs, it could present a conflict of interest to provide adequate guarantees to UK citizens.
Image Credit: AP
What was the Royal Mint NFT project?
Prime Minister Rishi Sunak is an outspoken advocate of cryptocurrencies. He hopes to transform the UK into a leading global center for blockchain trade and development. As part of this ambition, Sunak asked the Royal Mint, the UK’s oldest company and official manufacturer of British coins, to create an NFT collection last summer. However, this project never came to fruition and the details of the project never surfaced.
As of today, the official position of the UK Treasury is that the project will remain “under review”.
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