Today in Crypto: Crypto Assets Lose $800B in Market Value Over Month; UK Promises New Laws to Promote, Seize Crypto

Crypto assets have lost almost $800 billion in market value in the past month, a report said.

The crypto assets have touched a new low of $1.4 trillion as of Tuesday, according to data from CoinMarketCap.

The decline in digital asset prices comes alongside a fall in equities as fears of aggressive interest rate hikes continue.

Bitcoin makes up around 40% of the crypto market, but the coin hit a 10-month low on Tuesday. It dropped below $30,000 before rebounding to $31,450, six days after it had been at $40,000.

Meanwhile, Chile’s central bank digital currency (CBDC) will have to accept offline payments, according to the central bank Governor Rosanna Costa, Coindesk reported Tuesday (May 10).

Costa has said there will be a policy paper on the topic — though no final decision has been made on whether a CBDC will be issued.

According to Costa, the CBDC should “operate both online and offline,” and she said it wasn’t “necessarily efficient today.”

A survey by the Bank of International Settlements (BIS) has found that 9 out of 10 central banks have been looking into issuing their own virtual assets.

In other news, a new U.K. bill would increase the strength of the country’s financial services industry, which will include provisions about the state of crypto.

The report says the goal of the bill is to bolster the U.K.’s status as a leader in financial services, making sure it keeps delivering a competitive marketplace for growth.

The bill will cut “red tape in the financial sector” and make the U.K. a “more attractive” place to do business. The report says the bill will include “supporting the safe adoption of cryptocurrencies and resilient outsourcing to technology providers.”

Another bill would create empower government to seize stolen crypto and recover losses from ransomware attacks.

Finally, crypto exchange Currency.com will partner with B2B2C digital asset infrastructure provider Zero Hash, a press release said, which will let U.S. clients buy and store popular cryptocurrencies.

Edward Woodford, CEO of Zero Hash, said the company was glad to power access to Currency.com, letting U.S. clients buy, sell, deposit and withdraw numerous cryptocurrencies.