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Cryptocurrency exchange Coinpass said on Wednesday that it has received permission from UK’s Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) to operate as a crypto assets company.
Coinpass Gets FCA Approval to Operate as Crypto Assets Company
According to Coinpass' chief executive Jeff Hancock, the company has become the first crypto exchange in the UK to secure regulatory approval.
The FCA was appointed the anti-money laundering and counter-terrorist financing supervisor of crypto businesses in January. Since then digital asset exchanges have had to register with the agency for conducting business in the country. As of now, only six firms have registered with the regulator and many more are awaiting approval. In June, a spokesperson from the FCA reported that the number of abandoned registrations had climbed to 64 as several companies were unable to meet the regulator’s standards.
World’s largest cryptocurrency exchange Binance is already restricted in the United Kingdom. In July, the company was told by the FCA to notify its users that it’s not authorized to operate in the United Kingdom. Following that action, Binance faced a series of setbacks from the country’s top banks that banned their clients from using their accounts for crypto trading at the exchange.
UK’s Warning Against Unregistered Crypto Firms
The UK has maintained a strict stance against cryptocurrencies in light of increasing adoption from people. According to FCA’s latest quantitative study, some 2.3 million British adults hold digital assets compared to last year’s 1.9 million. The growing popularity of cryptos had pushed the FCA to alert investors about the shortcoming of the nascent asset class.
In June, FCA head of enforcement and market oversight, Mark Steward, warned that “a number of firms that are clearly doing business in the UK without being registered.” He said 111 crypto-focused companies had failed to legitimize their operations, adding that this is a “real risk” and the agency is worried about it.