Susie Violet Ward | CEO & Co-Founder @BitcoinPolicyUK | Bitcoin journalist with bylines @Forbes & @CityAM
Views are my own
Joined March 2022
- Tweets8.4K
- Following991
- Followers7.4K
- Likes20.4K
Pinned Tweet
Bitcoin Policy UK is coming out of consolidation and I am resuming my role as CEO. Dr Cristina Llamas-Rey is returning as COO.
Getting here has not been easy. I have never taken a salary from BPUK, and the organisation is still run by a small team of volunteers giving their time around jobs, families and other commitments.
In January, I reached the point where I could not justify taking recurring donations when we did not have the resources to operate properly. Scaling back was the responsible thing to do.
The aim was to keep BPUK going while we cut costs and rebuilt around what we could actually sustain. That is what we have done.
Throughout consolidation, the work continued and we sent our 2026 Manifesto to all 650 MPs. We also responded to Government, FCA, HMRC and Bank of England consultations, worked on banking access, Digital ID and privacy, and continued publishing articles and practical resources.
The way we work has been simplified, with a stricter line on what BPUK can realistically take on.
We are still unfunded and our resources remain limited, so coming out of consolidation does not mean we suddenly have the capacity to do everything people would like BPUK to do.
There are a lot of worthwhile projects and great people doing important work, but we have to guard our time carefully and focus on where BPUK can have the most impact.
A huge thank you to everyone who helped keep BPUK going through this period. The people who continued giving their time, expertise and support made it possible for us to keep moving while we worked through everything behind the scenes. I am very grateful.
I would like BPUK to have a paid team and do far more. If you can help with funding, please email [email protected].
Press release below.
Decentra Suze retweeted
📣 We’re hosting a panel about Post-MiCA and the opportunity the ecosystem will have after regulatory clarity at the BFC Symposium. 🟠
Catch Susie, Tom, Simon, and Leon on November 4th at Pakhuis de Zwijger during Bitcoin Amsterdam 🇳🇱
Decentra Suze retweeted
🎙️⚡️ This week on Life with Bitcoin
What brings people into Bitcoin? And what makes them stay, participate, and contribute?
For Kyle Knight, aka @buckethatbtc , it started with a few college friends. Five years later, he's building BitPlaza and helping the next generation find their place in Bitcoin.
In this episode, @ivylumi and Kyle explore why belonging matters for adoption, how art and culture bring people together, and what it takes to build welcoming communities without expecting everyone to think alike.
They also look toward the next generation.
What does Bitcoin mean to young people navigating student debt, uncertain careers, and a traditional path to success that no longer feels guaranteed?
Will future generations even call themselves Bitcoiners, or will Bitcoin simply become part of everyday life?
The conversation gets personal, too. From how Bitcoin changes our ambitions to the sacrifices we make along the way.
How do we build a better future without forgetting to live today?
Because adoption isn't just about getting more people to own Bitcoin. It's about creating opportunities for people to participate, contribute, and build something meaningful together.
What brought you into Bitcoin, and what made you stay?
🎥 Watch the full episode right here👇
Without freedom money we don’t have freedom.
I’m heading back to Amsterdam next week and I keep coming back to what @Snowden said when I was there in 2023.
“We are all part of a bigger game and Bitcoin is one of the strongest levers in that. The systems that we are influencing, payments and finance, will shape what the world of tomorrow looks like.”
Bitcoin touches money, economics, energy, control, philosophy, security and freedom ... which is why it means so much to so many of us.
I’ll be moderating three sessions, details below
If we don’t have freedom money, we don't have freedom.
Bitcoin Amsterdam 2023 was my first Bitcoin conference, and sitting on the Livedesk while Edward Snowden came up on the screen was completely surreal.
One part of his talk has stayed with me ever since. He said:
“Acting in secret is not freedom. It’s not the goal.
Contorting yourself to be able to fit, to pass through the keyholes of the tyranny that is surrounding us - that’s not the solution.”
Almost three years later I still think this is one of the most important talks I’ve heard on Bitcoin, because it wasn’t about price or markets... it was about what Bitcoin is actually for.
Block No. 811,847, approx. 12:14 UTC on 12 October 2023.
On 6 November I’ll be at Bitcoin Amsterdam on the Proof of Work Stage moderating:
Who Controls the Mining Stack?
I’ll be joined by:
- Duncan Coombe - The Solo Mining Co
- Abubakar Sadiq Ismail - 2140.dev
- BitMaker - Bitronics
We’ll be looking at where real control sits in Bitcoin mining today.
The discussion will cover how open source hardware and tools can shift that balance, the practical difference home miners can make against large industrial operations and what would need to change for independent mining to become a counter to centralisation.
bitcoin.amsterdam
On 6 November I’ll be at Bitcoin Amsterdam on the Orange Stage moderating:
Miners Walked So Data Centers Could Run: Fighting Energy FUD
I’ll be joined by:
- Erik Hersman - Gridless
- Margot Paez - Bitcoin Policy Institute
We’ll be looking at the double standard in how energy use is discussed.
Bitcoin mining has faced years of criticism for its electricity consumption, but data centres already use roughly three times as much.
We’ll also look at what miners can teach data centre operators about flexibility, working with communities and building energy infrastructure and whether the two can become complementary rather than competing loads.
bitcoin.amsterdam
@whiteafrican @jyn_urso
What does it actually mean to be a sovereign individual in an age of debanking, financial surveillance and government overreach?
Great conversation with David, Myke and The Blockchain Report on The Node Network, discussing Bitcoin, sovereignty, Palantir, data collection and protecting our freedom in an increasingly digital world.
Huge thanks for having me on! Live discussion below!
Where do you think the line is between useful data tools and overreach?
Canton Goes LIVE With DTCC: Wall Street On-Chain + Coinbase Leak nitter.cf/i/broadcasts/1kJzDPZak…
Decentra Suze retweeted
If a company holds your data, someone can demand access to it.
In 2004 the FBI ordered Nick Merrill to provide customer records. He couldn't tell anyone.
25 years after the PATRIOT Act, he shares his story and why privacy must be built into tech we use.
logos.co/media/article/nic-m…
Decentra Suze retweeted
Authoritarianism is growing and coordinating.
At London's historic National Liberal Club, the Human Rights Foundation and Action for Democracy presented new research tracking authoritarian regimes and their connections.
Activists who have experienced repression firsthand also shared powerful accounts of their fight for freedom.
Thanks to @HRF and Action for Democracy for bringing researchers and those fighting authoritarianism together.
“Pushing the world in the right direction.”
A powerful message from Javier El-Hage of the Human Rights Foundation at last night's event in London, where researchers and democracy activists came together to discuss authoritarianism, the fight for freedom and some encouraging signs of change.
Hosted by the Human Rights Foundation and Action for Democracy at the historic National Liberal Club, the evening marked the relaunch of the Authoritarian Collaboration Index, now drawing on HRF's Tyranny Tracker.
I had the privilege of speaking with Javier, HRF's Chief Legal and Policy Officer, about the rise of authoritarianism, the importance of protecting individual freedoms and the work his team is doing through the Tyranny Tracker.
The project examines 179 countries and territories, assessing electoral competition, freedom of dissent and institutional accountability to determine whether governments are democratic, hybrid authoritarian or fully authoritarian.
Its findings are sobering. According to HRF, around three quarters of the world's population lives under authoritarian rule.
Javier spoke about the importance of protecting individual freedoms and understanding how governments restrict them. Despite the scale of the challenges, he remains optimistic that progress is being made.
I also interviewed Domonkos Kovács of Action for Democracy, whose Authoritarian Collaboration Index uses AI-assisted research to track cooperation between authoritarian actors across borders.
Domonkos pointed out that although authoritarianism has been advancing globally, recent political developments offer reasons for optimism.
Hungary and just days ago, Serbia have both seen entrenched political leaders defeated at the ballot box.
Some of the most moving contributions came from people who have experienced repression firsthand.
A Hong Kong democracy activist, now living in exile in Britain, described the dramatic erosion of freedoms in her home city. Hong Kong's governing authority is now classified as fully authoritarian by the Tyranny Tracker.
Despite everything, her message was hopeful:
“Hong Kong is not a lost cause.”
Then there was Jesús Armas, the Venezuelan opposition activist and former political prisoner who spent more than a year in detention after standing up for democracy.
He spoke with remarkable optimism about Venezuela's future and praised the people who continue fighting for freedom.
“One day Venezuela will be free.”
It's always a privilege to interview people working on questions of freedom and human rights, particularly when those discussions bring you face to face with people who have paid such a personal price for defending them.
Understanding how authoritarianism takes hold, how technology can strengthen state control and how we protect our freedoms before they're lost has never felt more important.
Last night's discussions were a reminder that authoritarianism is not inevitable and neither is its permanence.
Thank you to @HRF and Action For Democracy for bringing everyone together and for the opportunity to hear these perspectives firsthand.
“Pushing the world in the right direction.”
A powerful message from Javier El-Hage of the Human Rights Foundation at last night's event in London, where researchers and democracy activists came together to discuss authoritarianism, the fight for freedom and some encouraging signs of change.
Hosted by the Human Rights Foundation and Action for Democracy at the historic National Liberal Club, the evening marked the relaunch of the Authoritarian Collaboration Index, now drawing on HRF's Tyranny Tracker.
I had the privilege of speaking with Javier, HRF's Chief Legal and Policy Officer, about the rise of authoritarianism, the importance of protecting individual freedoms and the work his team is doing through the Tyranny Tracker.
The project examines 179 countries and territories, assessing electoral competition, freedom of dissent and institutional accountability to determine whether governments are democratic, hybrid authoritarian or fully authoritarian.
Its findings are sobering. According to HRF, around three quarters of the world's population lives under authoritarian rule.
Javier spoke about the importance of protecting individual freedoms and understanding how governments restrict them. Despite the scale of the challenges, he remains optimistic that progress is being made.
I also interviewed Domonkos Kovács of Action for Democracy, whose Authoritarian Collaboration Index uses AI-assisted research to track cooperation between authoritarian actors across borders.
Domonkos pointed out that although authoritarianism has been advancing globally, recent political developments offer reasons for optimism.
Hungary and just days ago, Serbia have both seen entrenched political leaders defeated at the ballot box.
Some of the most moving contributions came from people who have experienced repression firsthand.
A Hong Kong democracy activist, now living in exile in Britain, described the dramatic erosion of freedoms in her home city. Hong Kong's governing authority is now classified as fully authoritarian by the Tyranny Tracker.
Despite everything, her message was hopeful:
“Hong Kong is not a lost cause.”
Then there was Jesús Armas, the Venezuelan opposition activist and former political prisoner who spent more than a year in detention after standing up for democracy.
He spoke with remarkable optimism about Venezuela's future and praised the people who continue fighting for freedom.
“One day Venezuela will be free.”
It's always a privilege to interview people working on questions of freedom and human rights, particularly when those discussions bring you face to face with people who have paid such a personal price for defending them.
Understanding how authoritarianism takes hold, how technology can strengthen state control and how we protect our freedoms before they're lost has never felt more important.
Last night's discussions were a reminder that authoritarianism is not inevitable and neither is its permanence.
Thank you to @HRF and Action For Democracy for bringing everyone together and for the opportunity to hear these perspectives firsthand.
The Tyranny Tracker - Measuring political freedom across 179 countries and territories, classifying governments as democratic, hybrid authoritarian or fully authoritarian based on elections, freedom of dissent and institutional accountability.
tyrannytracker.org/
@JavierElHage @HRF
Authoritarian Collaboration Index - How do authoritarian regimes work together, and who's helping them?
actionfordemocracy.org/aci
@d_d_kovacs @DavidKoranyi
The government is building systems with enormous power over our lives, while making it increasingly difficult for ordinary people to understand or challenge them.
A new Guardian investigation raises serious concerns about the Home Office's use of AI across immigration enforcement, including facial recognition, phone analysis and asylum casework.
According to @OpenRightsGroup, much of this is happening with little public scrutiny, with national security repeatedly cited to withhold information.
Britain was so concerned about the security of Huawei equipment that it ordered its removal from our 5G networks. All the technology our own government is deploying deserves the same scrutiny.
Our recent history gives us plenty of reasons to question government assurances.
In 2020, the Home Office withdrew an algorithm used to assess visa applications following a legal challenge alleging discrimination.
The Post Office Horizon scandal demonstrated the devastating consequences of trusting flawed computer evidence while dismissing the people who challenged it. Hundreds were wrongly prosecuted, with lives, reputations and livelihoods destroyed.
Britain already has extensive CCTV surveillance, expanding facial recognition, growing digital identity systems and documented cases of people losing access to banking services.
AI now gives governments the ability to analyse and connect vast amounts of information about individuals on a scale that would previously have been unimaginable.
Companies such as Palantir are already deeply involved in British public services, supplying technology to the NHS and Ministry of Defence.
Their growing role raises more concerns about how much control does the government retain when essential public systems depend on technology developed and maintained by private companies?
These technologies are being introduced for reasons that often sound perfectly reasonable, including national security, fraud prevention and improving public services.
The danger is what happens when more of our identities, movements, finances and personal information become accessible through increasingly connected systems.
I suspect many politicians truly believe they're making people's lives better. What concerns me is whether they fully understand the technology they're commissioning, the influence of the companies supplying it and the power they're potentially handing over.
A society in which people can be monitored, assessed and potentially excluded from essential services through systems they cannot understand or challenge is a frightening prospect.
Decisions made today could have consequences for individual freedom that future governments struggle to reverse.
If the government uses systems to assess people while limiting what the public can see about how they work, how are ordinary people supposed to challenge them when they get things wrong?
Read the full article here:
theguardian.com/politics/202…
Palantir’s role in Britain’s digital state is expanding.
- £182m NHS data platform (£330m potential)
- £240m MoD operational deal
- Up to £1.5bn UK defence investment
- Former senior officials at Palantir
- £50m Met deal blocked over procurement
Parliament has already called Palantir’s growing presence an “unacceptable point of weakness”.
The real danger is lock-in. Once critical systems become too difficult to move, the supplier gains leverage.
My latest for Forbes:
forbes.com/sites/digital-ass…
Research supported by @DWBB1984.
Decentra Suze retweeted
A cohort may come to an end, but the knowledge, confidence, and inspiration shared along the way stay with us. 🧡🟠
As our Cohort 12 Dadas prepare for their exams, we want to take a moment to celebrate the incredible tutors who showed up, shared their knowledge, answered questions, and poured so much into this learning journey.
From understanding Bitcoin’s fundamentals to exploring mining, wallets, the Lightning Network, regulation, and career opportunities, each session helped our Dadas see Bitcoin from a new perspective.
To @marcelorraine , @frankcorva @DecentraSuze , @natbrunell , @efenigson , @megasley , and @StaceyBiko — thank you for generously sharing your expertise, experiences, and time with our Dadas.
You were the real block rewards of Cohort 12. 🟠
From all of us at Bitcoin Dada, thank you for being part of this journey. We appreciate you! 🧡👏🏾
#BitcoinDada #BitcoinEducation #WomenInBitcoin #BitcoinAfrica
Decentra Suze retweeted
Digital ID was cancelled, but the infrastructure wasn't.
Our CEO investigates what's still being built, the risks to privacy and whether the government can be held accountable.
Did Britain really scrap digital ID?
The infrastructure is expanding and most people have no idea how far it's already gone.
Read my article in Forbes featuring @Togetherdec @OpenRightsGroup @BigBrotherWatch
forbes.com/sites/digital-ass…
Did Britain really scrap digital ID?
The infrastructure is expanding and most people have no idea how far it's already gone.
Read my article in Forbes featuring @Togetherdec @OpenRightsGroup @BigBrotherWatch
forbes.com/sites/digital-ass…
Britain scrapped digital ID. Or did it?
While the government says its national scheme has been cancelled, One Login is expanding.
Welfare records are already being used for identity verification, banking verification is planned and officials are developing ways to recognise individuals across government departments.
My latest for @Forbes looks at what's still being built, the risks of scope creep and what happens when government systems get things wrong.
Read the full article:
forbes.com/sites/digital-ass…
Decentra Suze retweeted
Come meet me in Zürich, Switzerland!
Monday evening: Fireside chat with @bitcoin_ch
Wednesday lunch with @SatoShe21m
Register here: luma.com/riak25fd
and here: luma.com/igovcl32
Britain is building critical public systems on technology it may not be able to leave.
Palantir is now integrating with the NHS, defence and financial regulation.
It has hired more than 30 former senior UK officials, including from MoD and NHS AI leadership. It has led closed door reviews of how government buys software while securing large direct award contracts with limited competition.
Owning the data is not the same as being able to switch suppliers.
As Palantir becomes more embedded across government, who really controls Britain’s services and digital state?
Who really controls Britain's digital state?
MPs have warned that Palantir's growing presence in the UK public sector represents an “unacceptable point of weakness”.
Its government work includes:
- The National Health Service
- Ministry of Defence
- Financial Conduct Authority
Palantir insists the government retains control of its data, but owning the data and being able to walk away from the technology are two very different things.
If the government can't realistically change suppliers, who holds the power?
Our latest blog investigates access to sensitive government systems, the revolving door between government and technology companies, vendor lock-in and Britain's growing dependence on a handful of US suppliers.
Read the full article in our blog here:
bitcoinpolicy.uk/blog-1/f/wh…
@DecentraSuze
