The FCA (Financial Conduct Authority), an independent regulator of the financial sector in the United Kingdom, urges operators of cryptocurrency ATMs in the country to deactivate their machines, under penalty of legal sanctions.
As a reminder, crypto-asset companies must be registered with the FCA and comply with UK money laundering regulations if they want to operate cryptocurrency ATMs in the UK.
The regulator indicates that no cryptocurrency companies are currently registered and authorized to offer these services, and that they are therefore all operating illegally.
A risky bet
“We are concerned about the operation of cryptocurrency ATMs in the UK and will therefore be contacting operators to ask them to shut down the machines or take other action,” the FCA warns.
The financial regulator adds that following the publication of a list of unregistered cryptocurrency companies, which could have continued to operate, 110 of them have ceased operations. At the time of writing, 244 cryptocurrency companies in the UK are listed as unregistered.
“Regularly, we remind the general public that cryptocurrencies are unregulated and therefore high risk, as it is very unlikely to be able to benefit from protection if things go wrong. »
The Gidiplus case
Last month, a UK court ruled against Gidiplus, a company that offered cryptocurrency services and wanted to continue trading, after appealing the FCA’s decision to deny its application to register as a cryptocurrency provider. cryptocurrency exchange under money laundering law.
The judge concluded that the “evidence was insufficient” to justify that Gidiplus complied with the legislation concerning its activity.
This decision echoes the FCA’s initial decision to refuse to register Gidiplus as a cryptocurrency company. She believed that the company did not meet the requirements of the Money Laundering Act and that its co-owner, Olumide Osunkoya, could not demonstrate that he had “adequate knowledge, skills and experience” to enforce the law. money laundering regulations in his business.
Source: ZDNet.com