UK investment platform warns traders to avoid bitcoin, crypto
CHONGQING, CHINA – JULY 17: In this photo illustration, a person holds a physical representation of a Bitcoin (BTC) coin in front of a screen displaying a candlestick chart showing the latest price movements of Bitcoin on July 17, 2025 in Chongqing, China. (Photo illustration by Cheng Xin/Getty Images)
Cheng Xin | Getty Images News | Getty Images
A major UK trading platform has issued a stark warning to investors hoping to make money from relaxed crypto rules: cryptocurrencies should not be in your portfolio.
The long-standing ban on retail investors in the UK accessing crypto exchange-traded notes (ETNs) was lifted on October 8. Exchange-traded bonds are debt instruments linked to one or more specific assets. In this case, they provide investors with access to digital tokens through the use of a regulated exchange.
New rules spark warnings Hargreaves Lansdowne – The UK’s largest retail investment platform – urged British retail investors to remain cautious.
“HL Investment’s view is that Bitcoin is not an asset class and we do not think the cryptocurrency has characteristics that mean it should be included in portfolios for growth or income and should not be relied upon to help clients achieve their financial goals,” Hargreaves Lansdowne said in a statement. he said.
“It is not possible to analyze performance assumptions for crypto and, unlike other alternative asset classes, it has no intrinsic value.”
When UK officials announced earlier this year that the ETN ban would be lifted, they argued that the move would support the “growth and competitiveness of the UK’s crypto industry”. It has been hailed by crypto firms as a major breakthrough for the industry in Britain.
The government also ruled on Wednesday that investors can hold crypto ETNs in stocks and shares ISA accounts; This account allows up to £20,000 ($26,753) per year to be invested tax-free.
Big wins and big losses
Cryptocurrencies, which are decentralized and therefore not regulated by central authorities such as governments, have their critics, and their prices are highly volatile. A year called “crypto winter” will occur in 2022 saw investors lose $2 trillion. Bitcoin The most traded cryptocurrency has delivered huge returns for early investors and was last traded around $121,508.
Bitcoin price
Still, Hargreaves Lansdowne urged investors to consider the risks of all cryptocurrencies, including Bitcoin.
“While Bitcoin’s long-term returns are positive, Bitcoin has experienced extreme losses over several periods and is a highly volatile investment, much riskier than stocks or bonds,” the company said in a statement this week.
However, the firm said it is aware that some traders want to “speculate with cryptocurrency ETNs” and will therefore offer “eligible customers” the opportunity to do so from early 2026.
Corporate support
Cryptocurrencies have long divided market watchers; While some major institutions are turning to digital assets, others are warning against them.
Last month Morgan Stanley said: It is close to offering crypto trading to retail investors through its E-Trading division. The bank was the first major US bank to offer wealthy customers access to bitcoin funds; it was a move others later followed.
Meanwhile, JPMorgan plans to get involved in the stablecoin space despite CEO Jamie Dimon’s vocal criticism of crypto. Billionaire investor Warren Buffett has also publicly attacked cryptocurrencies.
Chris Mellor, Invesco’s head of EMEA ETF equity product management, told CNBC on Thursday that he believes digital assets can offer investors a hedge against volatility in more traditional asset classes.
“Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies are sometimes considered ‘digital gold,’ raising questions about whether Bitcoin could one day replace gold as a non-fiat asset,” he said via email. “There is room for both in portfolios in our view. We have observed Bitcoin showing a very low correlation with stocks, US Treasuries and gold in recent months, with the caveat that correlations may change.”
Meanwhile, Nigel Green, CEO of financial consultancy DeVere Group, argued that Bitcoin’s recent move past $125,000 is a signal that digital assets are entering the financial mainstream.
“Investors are no longer looking at bitcoin as a curiosity on the fringe of the market,” he told CNBC. “Volatility is still there, but now it’s the kind of productive volatility that accompanies price discovery in a maturing market. Short-term volatility is inevitable when capital returns at this scale.”
Green called this “not a temporary boom but a structural realignment” for bitcoin, pointing out that the Trump administration’s positive policy mix provides further support for its credibility.
“The hands holding Bitcoin have become stronger, more institutional and more patient,” he added. “Bitcoin remains a solid and durable investment for strategically minded investors.”
— CNBC’s Ryan Browne and Hugh Son contributed to this article.
