On 8 August 2022, the UK Jurisdiction Taskforce published a public consultation on the issuance and transfer of digital securities under English private law.

In November 2018, the UK Jurisdiction Taskforce published its Legal Settlement on the Status of Cryptoassets and Smart Contracts. The Legal Settlement expressed the view that cryptoassets were property and smart contracts were contracts under English law, and has been well received in many jurisdictions. Furthermore, on 22 April 2022, the UK Jurisdiction Taskforce published its Digital Dispute Resolution Rules to be incorporated into on-chain digital relationships and smart contracts.

Now, the UK Jurisdiction Taskforce is turning its attention to the way in which English law can support the issue and transfer of equity or debt securities on blockchain and DLT systems. Therefore, they are asking experts  and members of the public to provide their input into the questions that the proposed Legal Statement on Digital Securities can most usefully answer

The consultation closes on 23 September 2022.