Former UK prime minister Boris Johnson takes the stage at Solana’s Breakpoint conference in London today, months after publicly describing Bitcoin as a “Ponzi” scheme. The three-day event, which runs November 15 to 17 at Olympia London, is the first edition of the crypto gathering to be held in the UK, and Johnson is one of its headline political speakers.
The Solana Foundation announced Johnson as a speaker on October 27, alongside former chancellor Sajid Javid, Revolut chair Martin Gilbert and senior figures from Mastercard, Barclays, the DTCC and BNY. The programme is built around a thesis the foundation calls the “Token Supercycle,” centred on stablecoins, tokenised assets, payments and AI-driven activity moving onchain.
From Ponzi jibe to crypto stage
In March, Johnson wrote on X that he had called Bitcoin a Ponzi, a remark that has followed him onto the conference circuit. The Solana announcement does not disclose whether Johnson will receive a speaking fee, and no payment for the November event has been publicly confirmed. He previously received £253,880.90 — about $340,000 — from Singapore-based blockchain company ParallelChain Lab for a speaking engagement, according to reports of his register of interests.
Johnson is not the only former senior UK politician on the bill. Javid, who served as chancellor and health secretary, and Lord Vaizey of Didcot, a former culture and digital economy minister, will appear alongside senior City figures including Standard Life chair Sir Nicholas Lyons and ICE Europe president Hester Serafini.
London’s token moment
Breakpoint 2026 lands in London at a moment when crypto firms are pushing deeper into mainstream finance, with the conference’s first day focused on institutions already building onchain. Solana’s native token, SOL, was trading at $100.12 when the speaker lineup was announced on October 27, down 1.9% over 24 hours, with a market value of $58.73 billion.
Whether Johnson uses his appearance to soften his earlier criticism of Bitcoin remains to be seen. The foundation has not said what any of the policy speakers will discuss, and Johnson’s own column this week was devoted to attacking the prime minister’s EU deal rather than digital assets. For the crypto industry, though, the presence of a former prime minister on stage is itself the point.
