The new Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, Rishi Sunak, agrees that the NFT project is still in the pipes, despite the collapse of the market.
The project survives the bear market
This is expected news, NFT project led by the British Treasury is still relevant. This is confirmed by the Prime Minister Rishi Sunak who has just taken up her duties at 10 Downing Street, succeeding Liz Truss. The latter will only remain 45 days at the head of the British government.
This project named “NFT For Britain” was launched while Rishi Sunak was the chancellor, British government finance minister. It was last April that the Chancellor at the time announced that the Treasury was embarking on the NFT adventure. A way to surf on a trend still alive at the time.
Chancellor @RishiSunak has asked @RoyalMintUK to create an NFT to be issued by the summer.
This decision shows the the forward-looking approach we are determined to take towards cryptoassets in the UK. pic.twitter.com/cd0tiailBK
— HM Treasury (@hmtreasury) April 4, 2022
Cryptocurrency investing is offered by eToro (Europe) Ltd as a PSAN, registered with the AMF. Cryptocurrencies are very volatile. No consumer protection.
The Royal Mint at the helm
It is the Royal Mint which must be in charge of issuing this non-fungible token. The Royal Mint, or Royal Mint in French, is the British agency charge of minting coinslike the Banque de France in France.
With a delay of more than 6 months, this project is still in the pipeline despite the collapse of the crypto market and the NFT sector these last months. The Royal Mint says about the project:
We continue to develop this first range of NFTs. We will share further details in due course.
For now, the Treasury Department, also in charge of this project, did not communicate in more detail. Sources close to the case just say that the cost of this project will be fully supported by the latter.
The NFT sector at half mast
The bear market is definitely here. The NFT sector is one of those that suffers the hardest the consequences. In particular, we observe a drastic drop in the monthly volume of transactions concerning NFTs. The latter has been in constant decline for 5 months. Otherwise, it is down more than 97% from its peak. A figure that testifies to the lack of interest of users for NFTs after their crazy hype of the year 2021
NFT sales on the marketplace OpenSea also testifies to this complicated period for the sector. The market leader NFT has indeed seen its sales down 60% in the third quarter compared to the second quarter of 2022. During the month of August, the trading volume of NFT also hit its lowest level in a year. A delicate context which is therefore not the most favorable to the launch of new collections.
A crypto-friendly prime minister
The new Prime Minister seems to be a crypto-enthusiast. Recently, he argued that the UK could become a global powerhouse and crypto-asset hub.
In 2021, then Chancellor, he also declared that he had set up a working group concerning issuance of a central bank digital currency (MNBC or CBDC in English) named Britcoin. A stable currency that would be pegged to the price of the Pound Sterling. The Bank of England continues to work on this project as many states or institutions worldwide.
In addition, the legislative work concerning crypto-currencies continues. the financial services and markets bill is currently being debated in Parliament. This text includes many provisions aimed at giving a regulatory framework for cryptocurrencies and digital assets.
However, this NFT project is attracting criticism, particularly from the British opposition. Some parliamentarians denounce a useless and vain project. In a context of galloping inflation and unprecedented fall of the pound sterlingwe can understand this position.
However, it will be interesting to observe the consequences of this project. It’s a safe bet that if successful, other states will try to replicate the initiative.
To learn more about Binance’s investment in Twitter, find our article here.
