The Financial Conduct Authority, the chief financial regulator in the United Kingdom, issued a warning to crypto exchange FTX, claiming it operates without authorization.
A warning note, claims that the firm “may be providing financial services or products in the UK without authorization.” Addressing the potential customers, the FCA notes that they won’t be able to get their money back or seek the protection of the Financial Services Compensation Scheme “if things go wrong.”
By the end of August, the list of crypto companies registered with the FCA included 37 entities, with the Crypto.com becoming the latest to join it. Other firms that managed to go through the registration process in 2022 to achieve Money Laundering Regulations approval were eToro UK, DRW Global Markets LTD, Zodia Markets (UK) Limited, Uphold Europe Limited, Rubicon Digital UK Limited and Wintermute Trading LTD.
New cryptocurrency-focused regulations were instituted in January 2020 to allow the FCA to supervise businesses operating in the space and enforce AML and counter-terrorism financing regulations.
Although there is no clear understanding of what the immediate repercussions for the unregistered entities might look like, the FCA is surely no vegetarian when it comes to enforcement. It isn’t the first time lately that FTX has caught the attention of the regulators. On Aug. 19, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) issued cease and desist letter for the company, alleging that it had misled the public about certain cryptocurrency-related products being insured by FDIC.
