UK Doubles Down on DLT & Tokenization in Bold Wholesale Market Overhaul

The UK just fired its loudest shot yet in the race to dominate institutional crypto—and traditional finance isn't ready for the aftershocks.

Blockchain Goes Wholesale

Whitehall's latest strategy paper reveals aggressive plans to embed distributed ledger technology (DLT) across bond issuance, settlement, and interbank transactions. No more lip service—real regulatory sandboxes go live Q1 2026.

Tokenization Takes Center Stage

Asset tokenization gets classified as 'critical infrastructure,' with HMRC drafting tax incentives for compliant projects. Because nothing motivates bankers like avoiding capital gains.

The Fine Print

While the FCA promises 'light-touch supervision,' insiders whisper about strict KYC hooks buried in Annex B. Same old surveillance—just with fancier algorithms.

This isn't experimentation anymore. The UK's betting its financial future on blockchain—whether the legacy system likes it or not.