The chief executive of the UK National Health Service (NHS), Amanda Pritchard, has warned that a growing number of young men need treatment after becoming addicted to cryptocurrency trading, and called for action. against “unregulated cryptocurrency sites.”
Ms Pritchard expressed deep concern about the issue in a speech at the ConfedExpo conference of NHS managers in Manchester on June 12. She said the NHS had to open the 15th specialist gambling addiction clinic this year to meet the growing needs of society.
According to Ms. Pritchard, the methods of luring users into cryptocurrency transactions are becoming increasingly sophisticated. Many young people are easily attracted by promises of quick wealth from the cryptocurrency market, but do not anticipate the potential risks.
Ms. Pritchard shared that she herself had heard medical staff at the national gambling addiction clinic talk about the increase in the number of people addicted to cryptocurrency trading. It also highlighted that specialist NHS gambling clinics are having to "pick up the pieces" after addicted patients cashed in on the volatile market.
“More and more opportunities are arising for young people to become addicted to gambling – including in unregulated cryptocurrency markets,” she said.
Amanda Pritchard on stage at NHS ConfederationsExpo warns about cryptocurrency trading addiction. Source: YouTube
Ms. Pritchard also mentioned that the British government issued a law to regulate cryptocurrencies under the same regulations as other financial services last June. However, the Ministry of Finance rejected lawmakers' proposal to regulate retail cryptocurrency trading similar to gambling in July 2023. Instead, they want to manage it as a financial service.
According to Ms. Pritchard, regulating the cryptocurrency market is extremely necessary to protect users, especially young people, from the potential risks of this market. She called on British lawmakers to take drastic action to control the situation and prevent Bitcoin trading addiction among young people.
According to BBC early last year, another European country, Switzerland, also established an Addiction Center called “The Balance”, to treat various addictions such as alcohol, drugs & behavioral health, and cryptocurrency trading addiction. It is known that a customer of the center contacted for treatment for cryptocurrency trading addiction after pouring about 200,000 USD into transactions every week.
In addition to The Balance, Castle Craig Hospital in Scotland has also treated about 100 cryptocurrency trading addicts with high blood adrenaline levels since 2018.
In Asia, a wellness center called Diamond Rehabilitation in Thailand has also added services specifically for detox and treatment of cryptocurrency addiction.
