In short, I've become very interested in Bitcoin and its enormous potential. I am a lawyer in the UK and I would like to get involved and provide assistance where I can (i.e. dedicate some of my spare time to research and providing advice on a pro bono basis).
Are there any groups in the UK I should contact (Bitcoin Foundation, for example, has some UK based members but no UK chapter as far as I am aware) or any other avenues I should be looking at?
You could take on the mess at Mt. Gox. Mt. Gox, which is a Bitcoin exchange in Tokyo, holds customer funds, acting as both broker and exchange. Mt. Gox is believed to hold tens of millions of dollars in customer funds. Withdrawing customer funds from them has been difficult to impossible since June of 2013. In June, they ceased most US dollar withdrawals. Then euro withdrawals started to be delayed. Now Bitcoin withdrawals are delayed as well. Currently, the discussion boards indicate that only small withdrawals are processed. Mt. Gox is believed to hold tens of millions of dollars in customer funds.
The physical location and principals of Mt. Gox are known. They are incorporated in Japan (as "Tibanne"). They do not appear to be registered with the Japan Financial Services Agency, which regulates banks, brokers, and payment service companies in Japan. The JSA has authority over them and can inspect and audit them, and take enforcement action if necessary, but has not yet done so.
A useful thing you can do is to find out exactly how the JSA can be brought into action here. It may be that some UK agency needs to be involved first. In the US, the US SEC and the JSA have a formal cooperation agreement, and there's probably something similar in place in the UK.
