Lord Philip Hammond had contacts with Treasury officials about crypto start-up Copper less than two years after stepping down as chancellor, a period during which former ministers are typically banned from lobbying.
The contacts in early 2021 came before Hammond took an official role with the company and raise questions about his relationship with Copper at a time when he had to seek government advice before taking private sector jobs.
Treasury documents obtained by the Financial Times said civil servants met Copper’s chief executive in mid-March 2021 after an “introduction via Philip Hammond/EST”, an acronym for then-economic secretary John Glen.
One internal email said Glen had told civil servants to use Hammond as an intermediary for Dmitry Tokarev, the CEO of Copper. Glen recommended “officials reach out to Philip to have him set up a call with Dmitry”.
Two unnamed officials “gave the initial view that engagement with this firm might not be particularly helpful”, according to the email.
The former chancellor spoke with Glen in late March in a scheduled call, a week after Tokarev’s meeting with Treasury officials, according to the documents released in response to a Freedom of Information Act request.
Officials prepared a briefing note on blockchain-based trading and custody systems for Glen ahead of the call and adapted it with Copper in mind, the documents show.
Hammond told the Treasury minister about “concerns from firms such as Copper” on the speed of regulatory change for crypto companies. He also relayed to Glen Tokarev’s feedback on Copper’s meeting with Treasury officials.
“Philip has been in touch with [Glen] this morning to pass on that the Copper CEO was incredibly impressed with the meeting,” according to another email between unnamed Treasury officials.
Hammond left his post as chancellor in July 2019 and formally joined Copper just over two years later, in August 2021.
For the first two years after they leave office, former ministers have to obtain advice from the Advisory Committee on Business Appointments (Acoba) about roles they wish to take on.
Acoba typically bans ex-ministers from lobbying their former departments in the two-years after they leave, reflecting the position set out in the ministerial code, though the body sometimes imposes shorter periods.
Hammond’s August 2021 appointment as an adviser to Copper fell outside the two-year windows under the Acoba rules and ministerial code.
He was granted Copper “growth shares”, which do not carry voting rights, in May 2022 and became the firm’s chair in January last year.
The former chancellor told the FT he “emphatically” did not regard his interactions with Glen as lobbying and “did not at any time ask John Glen to facilitate a meeting for Copper”, which he said “would be inappropriate”.
Hammond said he had an “informal” March 2021 phone call with Glen that was part of “regular, if not particularly frequent” contact with a “close political friend”.
He said the two “have a deep shared interest in the health of the UK Financial Services sector, and particularly in the potential of fintech to help the UK maintain its role as a globally significant financial hub”.
Hammond added that “any contact [he] had with anyone was not on behalf of Copper”.
A HM Treasury spokesperson said that all transparency processes were carried out in the correct way.
Treasury representatives “meet with many crypto firms every year to help understand the sector and inform policy development to ensure it is proportionate and safe”, they added.
A spokesperson for Glen said that “as a friend and former colleague” he would “regularly meet” Hammond “in a private capacity”.
“These were not official meetings and did not require declaring. It was entirely appropriate for a Treasury minister to meet with a well-respected former chancellor,” they added. Copper did not respond to a request for comment.
The Greensill lobbying scandal in 2021 brought heightened attention to contacts, including informal ones, between ex-ministers and their former colleagues.
Governmental ethics and lobbying watchdogs have warned about undisclosed lobbying and weaknesses in transparency disclosure rules.
Campaigners have called for greater transparency on interactions between former high ranking officials and their former colleagues, even when they have not yet taken up formal roles with private interests.
“Wherever a minister or senior civil servant’s ear is being bent in favour of a particular private company behind closed doors, it is essential it is disclosed,” said Sue Hawley, executive director of Spotlight on Corruption.
The FT previously reported that Copper in February 2022 secured a meeting with Treasury officials following a weekend phone call between Hammond and Glen.
The Registrar of Consultant Lobbyists, which requires lobbyists to register and disclose their clients, said Hammond had not conducted unregistered lobbying in that instance because he was an employee of Copper.
Hammond, a vocal crypto advocate, has publicly blamed the UK Financial Conduct Authority for Copper’s decision to relocate to Switzerland in the spring of 2022.
He has warned that the UK was falling behind EU countries as a financial centre for digital assets.
In April 2022, after Copper’s move to Switzerland, Hammond sent Glen a WhatsApp message linking to a news report about a crypto “exodus” from the UK. “This is such a massive own goal,” Hammond wrote.
