A deputy governor of the Bank of England (BOE) downplayed concerns that the UK is lagging behind other jurisdictions in introducing regulatory regimes for stablecoins, saying the rules will come into effect “as quickly as the US,” Bloomberg reported on Wednesday.
“Our goal is to make sure our regime is up and running, as quickly as the United States,” Sarah Breeden, deputy governor for financial stability, said at a conference Wednesday, according to the report.
The U.K. central bank will unveil its proposed regulations for stablecoins on Nov. 10, expected to impose holding limits of 20,000 pounds ($26,000) for individuals and 10 million pounds for companies.
The BOE drew the ire of many in the crypto industry when it was reported that the central bank planned to limit the number of stablecoins that individuals and companies could own. Breeden described these plans as “less of a problem in practice than people might think.”
He pointed to differences in the UK mortgage market compared to the US, where President Trump signed the GENIUS Act into law in July, as a reason why a limit on stablecoin holdings is necessary.
“People in the United States get their mortgages from Fannie and Freddie, and they finance themselves in the financial markets,” Breeden said, referring to the Federal National Mortgage Association (known as Fannie Mae) and the Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corp. (Freddie Mac). “People in the UK get their mortgages from commercial banks, so the need for limits as we transition to a stablecoin world is less relevant to the US regime.”
The BOE did not respond to CoinDesk’s request for further comment.
