Ep. 86: Susie Violet Ward - Fixing the UK's Broken Bitcoin Policy

My guest today is Susie Violet Ward, CEO and co-founder of Bitcoin Policy UK, a financial analyst and journalist (Forbes) focused on Bitcoin and the environment. In this episode, Susie unpacks the regulatory hostility toward Bitcoin in the UK, from the FCA’s refusal to distinguish it from crypto, to the media’s relentless misinformation, especially by the BBC. We discuss her personal journey from accountant to developer to Bitcoiner, and the uphill battle of educating regulators, advocating for mining, and defending financial sovereignty. Susie shares her efforts to expose flawed climate narratives, resist CBDCs, and challenge the FATF Travel Rule’s surveillance overreach. We also explore the risks of mining centralization, media capture, and why misunderstanding at the top is often worse than malice. Above all, this is a conversation about standing up for truth, pushing back against state overreach, and building a decentralized future, one policy at a time.

► This episode is part of the "Bitcoin Vegas 2025 Special" in collaboration with Ben Samocha, Founder of Israel’s CryptoJungle and Crypto Talks podcast.

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-- LINKS –

Susie’s Twitter: https://x.com/DecentraSuze

Bitcoin Policy UK Twitter: https://x.com/BitcoinPolicyUK 

Susie’s Forbes Column: https://www.forbes.com/sites/susievioletward/ 

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-- CHAPTERS –

00:00 Coming Up…

01:10 Introducing Susie & Bitcoin Policy UK 

06:30 Current Bitcoin Policy & public adoption in the UK

11:10 The State of Mainstream Media and Bitcoin Sentiment

12:45 Bankers & Politicians Understanding of Bitcoin

14:30 Susie’s FOI with The BBC

19:00 UK Legislation & Regulation Concerns

20:00 Dangers of KYC & the FATF Travel Rule, and MiCA

26:00 Belief in the System, Leading To Mass Surveillance & CBDC

29:50 Taxation and Privacy in the Digital Age

35:00 Centralization Risks of Bitcoin Mining - clip 37

38:00 The Digital Pound / CBDC Developm