UK financial watchdog banned crypto exchange Binance. Britain’s financial regulator has banned Binance, one of the world’s biggest cryptocurrency exchanges, from offering certain services in the country.
In a statement on Saturday, the Financial Conduct Authority said that Binance Markets Limited “is not permitted to undertake any regulated activity in the UK.”
The UK banned the biggest cryptocurrency in the world.
Binance, the World’s Largest Cryptocurrency Exchange
Britain’s financial regulator has said Binance, one of the world’s largest cryptocurrency exchanges, cannot conduct any regulated activity and warning consumers about the platform, which is coming under growing scrutiny globally.
In a notice dated June 25, the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) said Binance Markets Ltd, Binance’s only regulated UK entity, “must not, without the prior written consent of the FCA, carry out any regulated activities … with immediate effect”.
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Binance said in a statement Binance Markets, which it acquired in 2020, was not yet using its regulatory permissions and that the FCA’s move would not affect services offered on its website – Binance.com.
“We take a collaborative approach in working with regulators and we take our compliance obligations very seriously. We are actively keeping abreast of changing policies, rules and laws in this new space,” a spokesperson said.
Binance announced in June last year that it had bought an FCA-regulated entity and would use it to offer cryptocurrency trading services using pounds and euros.
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The move extends a regulatory crackdown on the cryptocurrency sector amid concerns about its potential involvement in money laundering and fraud.
Bitcoin gained on Monday, trading 5.1 percent higher at $35,309 as of 7:19 am in Hong Kong.
Binance announced in June last year that it had bought an FCA-regulated entity and would use it to offer cryptocurrency trading services using pounds and euros.
What if you have a Binance coin?
British citizens will still be able to access Binance’s services in other jurisdictions.
While trading cryptocurrencies is not directly regulated in Britain, offering services such as trading in cryptocurrency derivatives requires authorization.
The FCA has told Binance that by June 30, it must display a notice stating, “BINANCE MARKETS LIMITED IS NOT PERMITTED TO UNDERTAKE ANY REGULATED ACTIVITY IN THE UK” on its website and social media channels.
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It must also secure and preserve all records relating to UK consumers and inform the FCA this has been done by July 2.
The regulator did not explain why it had taken these measures.
The FCA is stepping up its oversight of cryptocurrency trading, which has soared in popularity in Britain and other countries around the globe.
Since January, the FCA has required all firms offering cryptocurrency-related services to register and show they comply with anti-money laundering rules. However, earlier this month, just five firms had registered, and that the majority were not yet compliant.
Japan’s regulator said on June 25 that Binance was operating in the country illegally, a notice posted on Japan’s Financial Services Agency website showed.
The Bottom Line
Meanwhile, China has stepped up efforts to stamp out crypto speculation, ordering digital currency miners to cease operations in several regions and urging banks and payment firms not to offer crypto-related services.
Increased regulatory scrutiny has weighed on the nascent crypto market. Bitcoin had a solid start to the year, rallying to an all-time high of almost $65,000 in April. But it’s since almost halved in value, trading at $34,783 as of Monday morning.
“This isn’t a step change in regulation which is going to knock the crypto craze on the head, but it is part of a growing trend of regulatory intervention in crypto markets,” Khalaf said, referring to the FCA’s restrictions on Binance.
“The idea that policymakers are simply going to allow a decentralized shadow payments system to emerge without any regulatory oversight is fantastical, and if the use of crypto assets becomes more widespread, we can expect beefed-up regulation to follow suit.”
