More than a hundred crypto companies will stop working in the British Isles, as almost all will not have time to register with the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA).
So far, only 25 companies have entered the British register of crypto companies that have the right to operate in the local market. Another 78 applications were rejected by officials, and 69 are awaiting their fate. The FCA, which fights money laundering in this way, must have time to process all applications by March 31. Among those awaiting a management decision is, for example, Revolut, a major player with a capitalization of $33 billion.
The FCA still continues to receive new applications, and market participants fear that the vast majority of the department simply will not have time to consider.
Faced with similar pressure from British officials, large companies such as Celsius and the Bitpanda exchange have already moved their head offices from the UK to the US. CryptoUK Group CEO Ian Taylor said that only a small number of new companies will be admitted to the provisional register in the coming months:
“Lawyers are already developing a plan B, which is for British companies to be able to exist somewhere else.”
Taylor believes that officials are not interested in extending the registration period.
Recall that in January 2020, the FCA was instructed to monitor crypto companies in order to combat money laundering and terrorist financing. First, the FCA launched a one-year registration scheme for applicants. At the end of 2020, a temporary registration scheme was created so that some companies are allowed to continue operating – while they go through the full registration process. In July 2021, amid a significant backlog of applications, the FCA extended the Interim Licensing Regime for the second time. In July, the regulator said that a significant number of applicants did not meet Money Laundering Regulation (MLR) standards.
Source: Bits
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