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Posts Tagged ‘Blockchain’

How to protect your crypto assets

Posted on: May 30th, 2025 by Natasha Cox

Director and Head of Blockchain and Digital Assets, Matt Green, comments on the recent series of attempted kidnappings of crypto entrepreneurs and discusses how to best protect assets stored on the blockchain, in The Next Web.

Matt’s comments were published in The Next Web, 29 May 2025, and can be found here.

“Despite the industry pining for decentralisation, much of the data points towards identifiable individuals with either massive wealth or access to third parties’ wealth. Simple blockchain analytics openly identifies addresses holding fortunes, and once those addresses are associated with named individuals (data triaging and clustering can unmask a pseudonymised  address), then criminals can see very clearly that a person holds significant wealth. Imagine your bank balances are posted online and through analysing open source data, the world can see it’s your account.

“In terms of crypto holders, the only thing stopping criminals gaining access is human error or force so kidnapping aims to break down the integrity of that human led security.

“The nature of blockchains means balances and addresses are public. In the same way van stickers read “no tools are kept in this vehicle”, it might be worth making a conscious effort to show a single person under duress is incapable of giving access to crypto holdings. Having clear statements about Multi-Sigs (Multi-Signature wallets) would likely deter kidnappers, who would have to pursue multiple individuals to make gains.”  

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Matt Green co-authors article on crypto-asset recovery for Oxford Law Pro’s Expert Essentials, Oxford University Press

Posted on: May 28th, 2025 by Natasha Cox

Writing for peer reviewed Oxford Law Pro’s Expert Essentials, Head of Blockchain and Digital Assets Matt Green and Outer Temple Chambers’ barrister Henry Reid provide a practical guide on the recovery of misappropriated crypto-assets.

Matt and Henry’s article was published in Oxford Law Pro, 14 May 2025, and can be found here.

Following the $1m loss of the stablecoin Tether, Matt and Henry explore the practical issues of asset recovery – including the use of blockchain analytics reports, dealing with crypto exchanges and pursuing persons unknown – as well as the legal considerations.

The article begins by discussing an example of a scam in which the claimants transfer one million Tether to persons unknown, considering the movement of these assets across the blockchain and their subsequent deposit at crypto exchanges. 

Matt and Henry then analyse the viability of potential legal proceedings, discussing potential routes to recover the misappropriated assets, and outline how to approach cryptocurrency exchanges at a pre-action stage.

Their article concludes with a narrative on preparing an ex parte application against these persons unknown, as well as seeking a worldwide freezing injunction to prevent the dissipation of the stolen crypto and seeking disclosure from the crypto exchanges to identify customers who have received the traceable proceeds.

Matt Green interviewed by Commercial Dispute Resolution

Posted on: May 14th, 2025 by Natasha Cox

Head of Blockchain and Digital Assets and Technology Disputes, Matt Green, speaks with Commercial Dispute Resolution (CDR) about his career in the crypto asset space and how some of the notable cases he has worked on have influenced legal precedent around blockchain and digital assets. 

Matt’s interview was published online in Commercial Dispute Resolution (CDR), 12 May 2025 and can be found here.

Discussing the first crypto case he was involved with, the landmark AA v Persons Unknown, Matt explains “I was enormously opportunistic, and I just rode with it… I was in the right place at the right time.”

He notes how there was “a big gap in the market” at the time, with many in the blockchain and digital asset space not knowing that there were legal routes to trace and recover their stolen or hacked assets.

Speaking on lessons learned during his career, Matt comments:“It is attrition, staying in the game, not overreaching. Being very aware that you don’t know everything. I don’t think anybody could say they did have all the answers, on the basis that the judiciary and the industry are trying to figure it out.”

Discussing the evolution of both his practice and the digital asset space itself, Matt explains that “there will be huge intellectual property battles about a variety of different things that we probably can’t even imagine yet, it’s almost unknowable.”

With many of Matt’s cases showing the “grizzly places” of the crypto world – from pig butchering scams on Facebook groups for grieving widows to tracing stolen assets to an organ farm in Southeast Asia, and the high-profile disputes over the identity of Satoshi Nakamoto.

Yet despite this, Matt encourages people to see the wider utility of this technology, telling CDR that he would like to see the “wider adoption and understanding of the applications of blockchain tech and digital assets.”

For junior lawyers looking to get into the constantly evolving world of digital assets and blockchain, Matt explains that there are plenty of ways: “set up a blog, write articles, start a podcast, join groups. If you get involved with the industry that you choose, you’re going to be much more valuable to a law firm than if you don’t, and there is no date by which you should start doing this.”

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Matt Green discusses UK crypto innovation and regulation in The Times

Posted on: April 24th, 2025 by Natasha Cox

Writing in The Times, Director and Head of Blockchain and Digital Assets, Matt Green, argues that the UK government needs to adopt a clear big picture strategy on implementing blockchain technology if it is to maintain parity with competitors.
 
Matt’s article follows a recent letter he co-signed as chair of techUK’s Blockchain and Digital Assets working group, alongside a coalition of leading UK and global trade bodies in the crypto sector to the UK government urging them to advance its digital asset and blockchain policy.

Matt’s article was published in The Times, 24 April 2025, and can be found here.

Government must urgently delivery regulatory clarity for cryptoassets

It is roughly six months since the digital assets industry called on the Labour government to provide urgent “regulatory clarity” at the party’s annual conference. The then economic secretary to the Treasury, Tulip Siddiq, responded by confirming the government’s commitment to fostering innovation in financial services, but there is little meat on the bone.

It has also been three years since the previous government’s plan to make the UK a global cryptoasset technology hub. This ambiguity serves no one.

Helpfully, the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) has since published key dates in a ‘crypto roadmap’ that details the development of comprehensive regulatory framework for the UK. Draft legal provisions are expected soon, with a series of consultation papers examining how the future regime will work and its content – such as stronger regulation for capital, liquidity and risk management of cryptoassets – to come. The roadmap anticipates that the rules will take effect late next year.

While that is welcome, the UK needs clarity and momentum to boost investment, growth and jobs, and to avoid falling behind competitors such as Singapore, the UAE or the US in technology investment and innovation. If the government is serious about making crypto a strategic priority, it should mirror the US by appointing a crypto special envoy – President Trump has appointed David Sacks, the former senior executive at PayPal, to that role.

The UK desperately needs a comparable appointee who can drive policy alignment, assimilate industry innovation and ensure that regulation and legislation are formulated and drafted with the UK’s best interests.

Our government also needs a plan that will focus on identifying opportunities and attracting investment. These could include an incentivisation programme to attract businesses with significant potential, explore elements of public sector integration and create a competitive tax and investment landscape.

Recognising the symbiosis of blockchain, artificial intelligence and quantum computing and their potential value is vital, both for preparing future regulatory frameworks, and considering use in daily life. Ultimately, this will improve efficiency for a swathe of crucial public services. Consider how the Land Registry and Companies House could hold important documents on the blockchain to simplify and accelerate property and share transfers. Key government procurement contracts and transmission of NHS data could also be transformed. 

According to the FCA, 12 per cent of UK adults – about 7 million people – owned cryptoassets last year. In contrast, according to the most recent data, only 8 per cent of global venture capital funding went into UK firms that specialise in that field, while the US dominates with 76%.

A clear direction, guided by a singular politically and sector agnostic driver, and with clear regulatory framework, could transform the UK economy for decades to come.

 

 

Matt Green to present expert evidence to House of Lords on Property (Digital Assets etc) Bill

Posted on: December 2nd, 2024 by Natasha Cox

Matt Green, Head of Blockchain and Digital Assets will be giving evidence to the House of Lords in the Property (Digital Assets etc) Bill this Thursday.

The bill is designed to ensure new asset classes aren’t prevented from being the subject of property rights if they do not fall neatly into the relevant two categories under common law.

As the Chair of techUK’s Digital Asset Working Group, Matt will be giving expert evidence on the impact of this legislation.

You can view the livestream of Matt’s appearance from 11.30am on Thursday 5 December by clicking here.

 

Matt Green comments on the Digital Assets Bill in eprivateclient

Posted on: November 18th, 2024 by Hugh Dineen-Lees

Director and Head of Blockchain and Digital Assets Matt Green comments on the introduction of the Property (Digital Assets etc) Bill, and argues that this legislation will provide greater clarity to the treatment of cryptocurrencies and digital assets under UK law.

Matt’s comments were published in eprivateclient, 15 November 2024, and can be found here.

“Property rights allow individuals to identify and demarcate ownership. In turn, being deprived of property creates a right in either damages or for that exact property to be owed. This ensures there’s greater market confidence when dealing with property, as there are clearer legal rights to ownership, control and general treatment of that property.”

“Historically property fell into two main categories – things that are tangible and exist physically or a contractual right enforced by a legal system (such as a debt claim or contractual right to goods). Digital assets (including cryptocurrencies, digital files and records, email accounts and certain in-game digital assets, domain names, even verified carbon credits) do not fall neatly into either category.”

“Use of a negative definition as proposed in the Digital Assets Bill, future proofs how property is treated, preventing the need to return to the issue for decades to come. To give an exhaustive list of what property is limits what may or may not exist going forward, so the wording is designed to ensure policymakers and the public at large are given that freedom to treat “things” as property when required, as well as the ability to sensibly divert from the rigid definition of property when required.”

“Although a welcome change for a legal system previously often unequipped to deal with such matters, enabling a “thing” to be property even where it is not tangible or creates a legal right may create inconsistencies at common law given the broad strokes definition. However the benefit of future proofing far outweighs the potential for inconsistencies and the Law Commission included guidelines as to what may constitute property under this Bill to assist decision makers.”

“As more “things” become property at a legal level, we may see the implementation of further laws, or even Judge’s decisions, which sweep up any unanswered issues. Overall, this Bill is a huge win for those dealing in digital assets, providing much needed clarity in an economy already utilising this technology at large.”