The Man Who Crashed the UK Economy Now Thinks Bitcoin Is the Answer

TLDR

• Kwasi Kwarteng served as UK Chancellor for just weeks in 2022 before his mini-budget crashed gilt markets and triggered a pension crisis
• He admits the mini-budget was “very, very rushed,” rolled out just two weeks after taking office
• Kwarteng warns the UK is now stuck in a fiscal “doom loop” where spending exceeds tax revenue and rising taxes kill growth
• He criticises short-termism in politics and markets, and says the UK is slow to embrace digital assets compared to Paris
• He is now executive chairman of Stack BTC, a UK bitcoin treasury company that holds 31 BTC, with Nigel Farage holding a 6% stake

Kwasi Kwarteng was one of the shortest-serving chancellors in UK history. He held the role for just 38 days in September 2022. Now he is back in public view, this time focused on bitcoin and what he sees as the failures of traditional finance.

Kwarteng took office on September 6, 2022. Just two days later, Queen Elizabeth II died. That compressed everything. His team then pushed through a sweeping mini-budget within two weeks of taking office.

The fallout was sharp. UK gilt yields spiked. The pound fell. And the crisis exposed deep problems inside the country’s pension system, specifically funds using Liability-Driven Investment strategies that collapsed under the pressure.

Kwarteng still believes the intent behind the policy was right. But he does not deny the execution was poor.

UK Stuck in a Fiscal Doom Loop

He is now warning that the UK faces a bigger problem than just one bad budget. In his words, the country is trapped in a fiscal “doom loop.”

The government spends more than it raises in tax. To close the gap, it raises taxes. But higher taxes slow the economy, reduce growth, and ultimately bring in less revenue. The cycle repeats.

Kwarteng pointed to the UK’s slow response to digital assets. During his time at the Treasury, he said officials were aware of bitcoin but treated it as a very small issue. He contrasted that with Paris, which he described as “quite forward leaning on digital assets.”

He also pushed back on comments from former Prime Minister Boris Johnson, who called bitcoin a “Ponzi.” Kwarteng argued for a more open approach to new forms of money.

Stack BTC and the Political Angle

Kwarteng is now executive chairman of Stack BTC, a UK-listed bitcoin treasury company. The firm currently holds 31 bitcoin on its balance sheet.

The company has attracted political attention. Reform UK leader Nigel Farage has taken a 6% stake in Stack BTC.

Stack BTC trades under the ticker STAK. It is one of a growing number of companies in the UK building bitcoin treasury strategies similar to those seen in the United States.

Kwarteng’s move into the bitcoin space follows his broader argument that short-term political thinking has left the UK exposed, and that harder, longer-term monetary assets may offer more stability.

Stack BTC currently holds 31 BTC, and Farage’s stake in the firm was confirmed as part of the company’s recent disclosures.

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