Cryptocurrency continues to enjoy gradual growth around the world, especially in retail trading circles. More and more useful apps and platforms have arisen to make access to crypto easier and promote its utility. However, there are still some roadblocks and relatively few encouragements to join the community, and now, the British taxman is getting involved.
From 1 January 2026, crypto companies will need to collect and report data on each of their customers, telling UK Revenue and Customs all of the trades and transfers. It’s a way for the UK government to get on top of crypto earnings reporting, but it also flies in the face of the ethos of the crypto community. This may impede the anticipated growth of UK crypto users to over 23 million this year, but there are ways for firms to remain appealing.
Becoming More Inviting
The issue with crypto in the mainstream, generally speaking, is a lack of understanding. For most, it’s a volatile digital coin that you can buy and hope the price goes up. The retail investment angle is its strongest selling point in the UK for now. Still, given that it’s known to not really be money and that it operates on a different kind of technology to normal cash, there’s very much a hill for many who’re intrigued to climb.
It’s an activity that requires users to commit cash up front to make use of the product, but in other sectors where this is the case, the competition is strong enough that platforms can and will offer promotions to newcomers. This is most evident in the world of online gambling. Here, the casino sign up bonus includes funds and spins as a boost after making a £20 deposit.
The bonus funds in the offer amount to five-times that, giving newcomers more to play with when they’re trying out the offering. A similar approach can be seen in another sector where the aim is for customers to use money. That sector is credit cards. Credit card sign up bonuses are very common these days, from better rates for a set period to cash up front. In crypto, a new user bonus of some crypto or a period of reduced fees could work wonders.
Reducing Fees for More Casual Customers
One of the most impressive success stories of UK fintech in recent years has been Revolut. As a part of their comprehensive, convenient app-based finance product, customers can buy shares in companies and buy crypto. Looking to break into the US market at the turn of the decade, Revolut decided to cut fees to zero on crypto transactions of up to $200,000 per month.
It was a huge move to try to get Revolut on the map, but in the UK right now, the fee structure is rather steep. For more casual retail traders playing with a few hundred quid, let’s say, fees amount to rather large percentages. There’s a fee to buy crypto and then to cash out of crypto. On the cash out front. It’s £2.49 for a trade between £100 and £150, which could easily eliminate any steady gains made over a short spell at those amounts.
Offering a way to get more for an initial sign up is one way to help encourage more retail crypto users and traders in the UK, but so too is reducing fees for more casual buyers – some of whom may go on to become major buyers.
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