What Rachel Reeves’ budget means for crypto investors in the UK
The UK autumn budget turned out to be more crypto-friendly than many expected. While taxes are rising in some areas, the major fears for digital assets didn’t materialise. For crypto investors, any impact is indirect, coming over time through broader changes to income tax and capital gains rules. Rachel Lin, CEO and co-founder of Synfutures, told Yahoo Finance UK that the budget won’t directly change how crypto gains are taxed. “There are no headline changes that rewrite how HMRC treats crypto gains. Capital gains tax (CGT) treatment remains governed by existing guidance,” she said. Lin added that the government is still pushing for more disclosure and enforcement in the crypto sector, which could affect reporting obligations and taxpayer risk over time. One of the most significant measures in the budget is the freeze on income tax thresholds until 2030/31. While not aimed at crypto, this affects investors because wages tend to rise with inflation. As more people move into higher tax brackets, staking rewards, mining income, and some airdrops, taxed as regular income, could face higher rates over time, though the budget does not explicitly mention crypto or these types of income. Read more: Bitcoin price rises as Trump may pick new Fed chair before Christmas Capital gains on crypto sales are also affected: more gains could be taxed at the higher 24% rate instead of 18%. Over time, this “fiscal drag” means higher tax bills even if crypto holdings and gains remain the same. The budget also introduced ISA reforms starting in April 2027. The overall annual allowance of £20,000 remains, with £8,000 earmarked for investments. Crypto investors using exchange-traded notes (ETNs) can still invest their full £20,000 allowance in 2025/26. From 2026/27, crypto ETNs will only be eligible for innovative finance ISAs, but the overall contribution limit remains, meaning investors can continue using tax-efficient wrappers for crypto exposure. However, the budget itself did not specifically mention crypto ETNs. Read more: What is a stealth tax and why is it so controversial? Other tax changes, like a 2% rise in property, savings, and dividend rates from 2026, do not explicitly impact crypto, but this assumes HMRC continues to treat crypto income as miscellaneous income or trading income. Importantly, several rumoured measures did not appear in the budget. There was no “exit tax” on unrealised gains for people moving abroad, no reduction in the CGT annual exemption, and no increase in CGT rates for crypto. This signals that HMRC’s treatment of digital assets remains largely unchanged for now.
