The UK and the US have started preparing to announce closer cooperation on digital assets, with stablecoins expected to be the focus of the partnership.
Following this announcement, the strategy brought together several crypto firms such as Coinbase, Circle, and Ripple, alongside major financial institutions including Citi, Bank of America, and Barclays.
According to sources familiar with the initiative, the agreement was organised at short notice, prompted by letters from the crypto industry groups that are urging the UK government to put digital assets on the agenda ahead of President Donald Trump’s state visit this week.
More information on the UK and the US’s crypto alliance
Stablecoins, representing digital tokens pegged to traditional currencies, are currently set to be a key element of the cooperation. With this in mind, British officials believe that the process of aligning rules with the US could give UK companies optimised access to the world’s financial markets while also drawing more American investment into the country.
In addition, the push comes at a politically sensitive moment for Britain, amid concerns about London-listed companies moving to New York/US for overall higher valuations. A closer partnership with Washington is expected to represent a way to counterbalance this trend and ensure that the UK remains competitive in the financial services sector.
Under President Trump, the US has taken an openly supportive stance toward digital assets, in contrast to the more cautious approach adopted by British regulators. Furthermore, UK crypto companies have also warned that this divergence risk is leaving them at a disadvantage compared to US rivals. With this in mind, the meeting was allegedly centered on aligning regulatory approaches for digital assets, with participants agreeing there was an opportunity for the development of the UK in digital assets if cooperation with the US moves forward.
Alongside the stablecoin focus, officials also confirmed that work is underway on a joint UK-US digital securities sandbox. The initiative is expected to allow companies to test blockchain applications in financial services, as well as reflect growing interest in real-world use cases for distributed ledger technology. A joint US-UK digital sandbox could also allow regulators to monitor activity across both markets while providing firms with the ability to serve them simultaneously and securely.
