Gairika Mitra
The UK High Court passed a ruling on Thursday declaring that stablecoin Tether (USDT) is now recognized legally as property under English law.
This decision comes just a day after the UK introduced a new bill recognizing crypto and other digital assets as personal property in England and Wales. This was partly triggered by a recent case involving a fraud victim whose cryptocurrencies, including Tether, were stolen. His cryptos were transferred through various exchanges after they were laundered via crypto mixers.
The UK government introduced the Property Bill on Wednesday, counting digital assets such as cryptocurrencies, non-fungible tokens (NFTs), and carbon credits as personal property.
In this case, the government identified USDT (Tether) to be a “distinct form of property” that is “neither a chose in action, nor a chose in possession.” It also said that USDT is not premised on an underlying legal right and “can be the subject to tracing and may constitute trust property in the same way as other property.”
Related: Florida Court Lets $80M Binance Bitcoin Lawsuit Move Forward
In the past, the UK would not recognize digital assets as personal property. Following Wednesday’s announcement, Heidi Alexander, the Minister of State in the Ministry of Justice, said that it is important to keep the law aligned with technological advancements and that the new legislation will help the UK stand out as a global leader in crypto assets.
As per a Chainalysis report from 2023, the UK was the 17th largest country in the retail user adoption of digital assets. It was also a global leader in DeFi activity.
The analytics firm also predicted that the UK is at an inflection point. “It can help deliver a framework for digital assets that enable sustainable economic growth and bring trust and safety for consumers and investors,” it wrote.
Related: US CFTC Approves Spot Crypto Trading on Regulated Exchanges
The UK government’s latest regulations point toward the same direction. Last year, the UK government also highlighted plans to grow the economy by regulating crypto asset activities.
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GAIRIKA
Gairika is a cryptocurrency journalist with a focus on Bitcoin and blockchain technology.
