Bank of England softens stablecoin rules in final policy draft
Key takeaways
- Bank of England softens stablecoin rules in final policy draft FILE PHOTO: Foliage grows outside the Bank of England building in London, Britain, May 19, 2026.
- It also slightly relaxed a proposal on backing assets to allow issuers of widely used stablecoins to invest up to 70% - versus 60%, previously - of assets backing them in short-term government debt.
- Stablecoins are digital tokens designed to keep a constant value that are often pegged to a fiat currency and backed by traditional assets such as government debt.
Bank of England softens stablecoin rules in final policy draft FILE PHOTO: Foliage grows outside the Bank of England building in London, Britain, May 19, 2026. REUTERS/Corey Rudy/File Photo · Reuters Reuters Mon, June 22, 2026 at 6:47 PM GMT+7 2 min read LONDON, June 22 (Reuters) - The Bank of England on Monday eased proposed stablecoin rules following widespread concern they risked stifling development of a nascent sterling-backed market, though some in the industry said the changes fell short of enabling an internationally competitive sector.
The BoE, which is finalising rules for sterling stablecoins that can be widely used for retail payments, scrapped plans to cap the amount of stablecoins individuals can hold, opting instead to limit total issuance per stablecoin, initially set at £40 billion ($52.8 billion).
It also slightly relaxed a proposal on backing assets to allow issuers of widely used stablecoins to invest up to 70% - versus 60%, previously - of assets backing them in short-term government debt. The remainder must be held in non-interest-bearing central bank deposits.