London Block Exchange plans ‘crypto pound’ LBXPeg

London Block Exchange CEO
Benjamin Dives.
London Block
Exchange

• The London Block Exchange plans to launch a new
  cryptocurrency pegged to the pound: LBXPeg.
• LBXPeg is a so-called “stablecoin” and they’re booming in
  popularity in crypto.

LONDON — A UK startup has announced plans to launch a new
cryptocurrency pegged to the British pound as interest in
so-called “stablecoins” booms.

The London Block Exchange, which
does over-the-counter crypto trades and is building a crypto
exchange and card, said on Friday that it had received permission
from an unnamed banking partner to launch a new cryptocurrency,
dubbed the LBXPeg, backed by reserves of UK sterling. The
one-for-one reserves will be held in an account at the third
party bank.

LBX’s CEO, Benjamin Dives, told Business Insider the reserves
will also be regularly audited by a top accountancy firm. He
added that he believes the LBXPeg will be the first so-called
“stablecoin” to be pegged to the pound.

“We would be ready for the first cryptopound to be minted in the
next 10 days,” Dives told Business Insider.

“The primary use case will be settlement for OTC trades in the
London market, then commonwealth exchanges where they don’t have
fiat banking, and then securities tokens who want to pay
dividends in a cryptopound.”

LBX’s latest plans come amid a boom in activity and interest in
“stablecoins.” These are cryptocurrencies where the price is
pegged to real-world assets, usually the dollar. The idea is to
give cryptocurrencies the price stability of a mainstream
currency but still retain their interoperability and digital
nature.

Circle, the cryptocurrency company backed by Goldman Sachs, this
week became
the first issuer of US Dollar Coin, a new stablecoin
pegged to the dollar it helped to develop. The Winklevoss
twins, who helped develop Facebook, have also
announced their own stablecoin
project. A
report from Blockchain earlier this week said there are over
50 stablecoin projects currency in development.

Stablecoins shot to popularity within crypto last year thanks to
the rise of
Tether, a cryptocurrency pegged to the dollar. Many crypto
exchanges have been shut out of the mainstream financial system
by banks due to compliance concerns.

Tether allows them to offer dollar-like liquidity even though
they cannot accept dollar deposits. Blockchain’s report
found around 60% of bitcoin trades now occur in Tether globally.

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