Civil recovery orders for the seizure of cryptocurrency assets will be part of the UK’s economic crime laws starting of April 26. As at the end of April, UK law enforcement officials will have the authority to freeze cryptocurrency assets used in criminal activity without needing to secure a conviction, according to recently disclosed Statutory Instrument documentation from the UK government.
The Economic Crime and Corporate Transparency Act 2023 has undergone amendments that were published on February 29. These amendments give the National Crime Agency more authority to confiscate and seize cryptocurrency assets that they believe are connected to suspicious illicit activities, without having to go through a drawn-out legal process.
Authorities will also have direct access to cryptocurrency assets from custodian wallet providers and exchanges. If necessary, they will also be able to destroy cryptocurrency assets.
The most popular method of destroying a cryptocurrency token is to burn it, which involves moving the tokens to a burn wallet address and removing them from circulation. The methodology for doing so was not specified. It is scheduled to go into effect on April 26.
According to a September 2022 report, the legislation that was enacted intends to provide law enforcement the power to combat the use of cryptocurrency in crimes such as drug trafficking, scams, and cybercrime.
The Economic Crime and Corporate Transparency Bill permits the recovery of cryptocurrency assets used in criminal activity without first requiring an arrest because some suspects may be able to evade prosecution by staying abroad.
But a British national who lost over $46,000 to scammers as a result of falling victim to cryptocurrency fraud said that UK authorities would not be “well-equipped to handle crypto crimes against UK residents.” He said that in order to recover his pilfered money, the agency did not act appropriately.
In the meanwhile, the UK government has declared that, within the next six months, it would enact new legislation governing stablecoins and cryptocurrency staking.
Economic Secretary to the Treasury Bim Afolami revealed that the government hopes to finish regulation prior to the upcoming election, which is scheduled for no later than January 28, 2025, at a cryptocurrency event held by Coinbase in London on February 19.
“It’s extremely evident that we want to finish these tasks as quickly as possible. And I believe those are achievable goals for the next six months”.