United Kingdom: Digital Identity sector criticizes government wallet

In the United Kingdom, three professional associations in the digital identity (DI) sector called on the government, on April 22, 2025, to revise its digital identity wallet project, the “Gov.uk Wallet.” In an open letter to Peter Kyle, Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, they stated that the government-issued wallet, unveiled in January 2025, had “sent shockwaves through the sector.”

The signatories expressed concern over the government’s intention to allow the “Gov.uk Wallet” to be used for commercial identity verification purposes, such as verifying the age of someone buying alcohol. They fear this state-sponsored competition could be unsustainable for private providers.

“We are concerned about the unintended creation of a government monopoly in the digital identity space, which could stifle innovation, limit consumer choice, and burden taxpayers with billions in new costs for services currently handled by the private sector, such as customer support and onboarding assistance,” the three associations wrote in their open letter.