John Paul M. Joaquin Tech 10.25.2022 00:Oct AM EDT

Former Finance Minister Rishi Sunak Elected UK Prime Minister — What Does This Mean for Crypto?

The UK now has a new Prime Minister, and he's a Crypto Bro.

Rishi Sunak has recently been elected to lead the UK's Conservative Party following the abrupt resignation of his predecessor, Liz Truss, due to her failed fiscal policies to get the UK out of its inflation-related woes, per Gizmodo.

Sunak will also be the first prime minister of color in the country's history and the youngest leader in modern times, per Reuters.

Rishi Sunak Election and Background

Sunak, age 42, is one of the wealthiest politicians in the UK. According to Sky News, he previously worked at Goldman Sachs and The Children's Investment Fund Management, Chris Hohn's hedge fund.

He was also Boris Johnson's finance minister during Johnson's stint as Prime Minister. During Sunak's time as such, he was able to steer the UK from further financial hardships during the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, per CNBC. As such, he is mostly seen as a safe option to become the UK's prime minister, especially so after Truss almost made inflation in the country a lot worse than it should be.

This view is evidenced by the sudden rise in the British Pound's value and a significant rally during recent trade in government bonds.

These events signify a sharp drop in interest rates, which is good for the country.

Traders were expecting interest rates in the Bank of England to rise above 6% come 2023, but Sunak's election to the role of Prime Minister made it drop below 5% for the first time.

Sunak is also the first crypto enthusiast and the first millennial prime minister the UK has, with his past work speaking for himself.

During his time as finance minister, he was in charge of getting the UK into the crypto market with plans like making the UK a crypto hub and introducing the Financial Services and Markets Bill.

According to Coin Desk, the bill could give the country's regulators power over the crypto industry, with the introduction of asset-pegged crypto like stablecoins into the scope of payments regulations in the UK.

For those unaware, stablecoins, a type of cryptocurrency asset, is the name of the NFT collection Sunak instructed the UK's coin producer to develop, per a separate Sky News article.

The NFTS within this collection relies on existing traditional currencies, such as the British pound, rather than the volatile crypto market.

Sunak also supported the idea of creating a central bank for digital currency or "Britcoin," which could make payments "faster, cheaper, and more secure," per Lyle Daly.

What Does This Mean For the Crypto Market?

The election of Sunak as the UK's prime minister is a positive event for the crypto market and the general economy according to CryptoUK Director Ian Taylor in a statement to Coin Desk.

Truss had been reported to be supportive of Sunak's crypto plans, but with him now as the head of the UK government, Brits and the world can expect significant advances in the crypto market.