Despite wanting to become a center for cryptocurrency, the United Kingdom FCA continues to have severe rules around this industry. Only 41 of the 300 crypto businesses that asked for regulatory certification were cleared, according to information released today by the U.K. financial conduct authorities. Applications that were turned down were forwarded to police enforcement.
UK FCA Gives Approval To A Few
The FCA is a group responsible for policing the financial markets and businesses in the area. The regulator’s goals are to safeguard legal and financial systems and consumer finances. The FCA has the power to approve or reject the operation of cryptocurrency enterprises in the United Kingdom due to its authority to authorize and regulate firms in the financial sector.
Notably, just 41 candidates were chosen from the 300 applications the financial watchdog received for the registration of crypto firms. Likewise, a few of the others were reported to law authorities for a probe into a financial crime or a possible connection to organized crime.
In a letter to the Treasury Select Committee, Sarah Pritchard, the FCA’s executive director of markets supervision, policy, and competition, noted: “Overall, in the limited number of cases where we have identified likely financial crime or direct links to organized crime, we have referred these to law enforcement agencies.” Some of those police investigations are still active. Additionally, the FCA’s new cryptocurrency-focused regulations, for which crypto firms are vying for approval, were first unveiled on January 10, 2020, to monitor businesses operating in the sector and ensure that they adhere to the same anti-money laundering (AML) and counter-terrorist financing (CTF) regulations as businesses in the traditional financial markets.
The FCA revealed certain evaluations that showed its input on “excellent and low quality” applications, even though it could not provide a clear explanation for why some applications were rejected. Businesses that exploited the application to advertise their goods and services, particularly while the application process was ongoing, are among the applications that were rejected.
