The assistant director of the Charity Commission for England and Wales urged UK fund trustees to exercise caution when dealing with cryptocurrencies.
Samuel Jackson published an article warning charities about the risks of accepting digital assets as donations as it is not clear how cryptoassets will evolve in the future. The assistant director advised fund trustees looking to “dive” into the world of cryptocurrencies to think carefully about their decisions in order to avoid problems with regulators.
According to Jackson, only a few charities in the world now accept cryptocurrencies. They are forced to do this due to the lack of access to banking services. However, some are considering benefiting from accepting cryptocurrencies.
“We want to help drive innovation. Charities need to consider what they need to do their jobs better. They should not get involved in crypto assets, because we do not know about all the risks that digital currencies can be fraught with,” writes Jackson.
The use of blockchain technology, on the basis of which crypto assets function, implies anonymity. It is better to stop using cryptocurrencies until there is clarity in the regulation of the cryptocurrency industry in the UK, Jackson is sure. The protracted decline of the crypto market fully justifies such a cautious approach, the assistant director of the commission believes.
Earlier, the Commission announced that it was going to draw up guidelines for charities accepting cryptocurrencies as donations at the end of the year.
“If philanthropists have any problems, we will have to intervene. We will be required to verify that institutions have met their legal obligations without exposing assets and reputation to undue risk,” Jackson writes.
