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UK lawmakers give crypto a pretty harsh assessment. He believes crypto has no intrinsic value and its trading should be regulated like gambling.

“Trading in cryptocurrencies is akin to gambling and should be treated as such,” he said on the CNBC page, Thursday (18/5/2023).

He asserted that unbacked tokens such as bitcoin and ether are not backed by underlying assets and “have no intrinsic value,” said a report presented to the UK Financial Selection Committee.

With a combined market capitalization of USD 737.7 billion, bitcoin and ether alone account for two-thirds of all cryptocurrencies.

Various events occurred in the crypto industry in the last year. From the collapse of crypto exchange FTX to the decline of the Terra stablecoin experiment. It has attracted increased attention from regulators, who are concerned about the negative effect on consumers.

In its report, the Financial Selection Committee said the high volatility and potential for losing large amounts of money meant that cryptocurrencies posed a significant risk to consumers.

“Given that retail trading in unsupported crypto looks more like gambling than a financial service, MPs are asking the Government to regulate it as such,” said the MEP.

“The events of 2022 have highlighted the risks that the cryptoasset industry poses to consumers, who remain largely untamed,” said Harriett Baldwin, chair of the Financial Selection Committee.

“Effective regulation is clearly needed to protect consumers from harm, as well as to support productive innovation in the UK’s financial services industry,” he added.

“However, with no intrinsic value, great price volatility, and no discernible social good, consumer trading in cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin is more like gambling than a financial service, and should be regulated as such. By betting on these unbacked ‘tokens’ consumers should be aware that all their money could be lost.”