The UK government has blocked a Royal Mint commit to create a “digital gold” token that might trade on a cryptocurrency exchange.

According to sources cited in Reuters, the british finance ministry refused to approve the 1,100-year old Mint’s plans to issue as much as $1 billion price of “Royal Mint Gold” (RMG) tokens, which might have been backed by gold assets keep within the government-owned Mint’s vaults.

“Sadly, because of market conditions this didn't prove possible at this point, however we'll revisit this if and when market conditions are right,” a Mint spokesperson was cited as saying.

Initially, The Royal Mint had planned to list the tokens on a blockchain-based exchange operated by U.S. derivatives exchange CME, that also manages the biggest regulated bitcoin futures market. However, the CME backed out of the partnership simply prior to the scheduled  launch date late last year, delaying the project and forcing the Mint to pursue a cryptocurrency exchange listing to save the venture. That was a bridge too far for the finance ministry, who considered such a partnership too risky for the Mint, and, by extension, the govt.

Without approval to maneuver forward with the project, Mint chief executive officer Anne Jessop — who was appointed in February. 2018 — shut the project down, leading to four staff being arranged  off and another 7-8 “made redundant.”

Had the total $1 billion in RMG been issued on a public blockchain, the token would have been numbered among the world’s most precious cryptocurrencies. At current valuations, it'd have ranked simply outside the highest 15 largest cryptoassets, trailing closely behind neo and ethereum classic (ETC).

The sources cited within the report advised that CME, that launched bitcoin futures in Dec. 2017 and has seen minor-but-growing volumes in this market, may be “cooling” toward this nascent asset category. “CME’s management modified, and they walked away, didn’t need to get concerned,” one source told the publication.

CME, on its part, told Reuters that it was “continuing to assess client demand with our partner and have nothing new to report at this point.”