Coinbase has taken aim at the United Kingdom’s financial system in a darkly satirical video, which comes as data reveals a steep rise in financial hardship across the country.
Titled “Everything is fine,” the video uses a musical tone and lyrics to brag about the UK’s strong finance while showing grim scenes of inflation, poverty, debt and financial struggle — a hint at the gap between what people are told and what they actually face.
“We ain’t got no troubles. No reason to complain,” the video starts, as damaged homes and cash-strapped individuals fill the screen. “The streets can’t get no cleaner. Nor the rat meat any leaner. No. Life is just as great,” it claims, as dirty streets flash across the screen.
The video also touches on the issue of soaring prices in the UK. “These fish fingers are a steal. Price is up a smidge — just 100 pounds a meal,” it says before joking that things “could be worse.”
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44% of UK adults now financially vulnerable
The Coinbase video comes as 20.3 million people in the UK, 44% of all adults, are now living in financially vulnerable conditions, up 16% since 2022, according to a recent report by Fair4All Finance. The rise is driven by unstable incomes, limited savings, ill health and job loss.
The report noted a sharp 59% increase in people with average incomes carrying high debt loads, now totaling 3.5 million. Another 1.9 million younger adults, up 45%, are also struggling, often relying on “buy now pay later” services and stuck in zero-hour contracts.
Food insecurity has worsened, with food bank use rising from 11% to 15%. Half of those in financially vulnerable situations say they can’t afford a healthy diet. Many are turning to payday loans and short-term credit to cover basic needs.
Two groups have seen the fastest growth. Low-income families with no savings have risen by 5% to 3.8 million, while those in a crisis state, surviving entirely on credit, have increased by 12% to 3.9 million.
Related: UK working to sell $7B in seized Bitcoin to boost budget: Report
UK’s crypto policy under fire
The UK has also been under fire for its crypto policy. Last month, analysts at the Official Monetary and Financial Institutions Forum (OMFIF), an independent think tank, argued that the UK has wasted its early-mover advantage in distributed ledger finance.
They said that the UK, once expected to set a post-Brexit gold standard for crypto regulation, continues to “talk un-specifically about regulation in the future,” citing “policy procrastination” as a key reason the country is falling behind both the European Union and the US.
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