UK crypto bill to ban foreign services

The regulation reforms will expand the financial regulator's authority and intensify oversight of the cryptocurrency business.

Despite the verbal welcome of crypto by the Conservative Party under new Prime Minister Rishi Sunak, the planned regulatory framework will reportedly increase industry inspection. The amendments to the law will expand the authority of the financial regulator and likely restrict the operations of foreign corporations in the United Kingdom.

According to an article in the Financial Times, the collapse of FTX has altered the trajectory of the United Kingdom's regulatory environment. According to reports, the Treasury is completing a set of guidelines that would allow the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) to regulate the activities and advertising of cryptocurrency companies in the United Kingdom. There would also be limitations on selling cryptocurrency on the British market from outside.

Assuming that these limits would be implemented in order to compel companies to register with the FCA, notwithstanding the report's omission of more details, they would likely be used to compel corporations to register with the FCA. According to Nikhil Rathi, the chief executive officer of the FCA, 85 percent of applicants failed the anti-money laundering (AML) exams.

As part of the financial services and markets bill, the guidelines are being developed. The extensive bill, which involves crypto legislation but is not restricted to it, has already been introduced to the British Parliament. According to FT sources, while the U.K. initiated its consultation on cryptocurrencies in 2021, it could be delayed until 2023 due to "rapidly evolving market events."

However, on December 7, the cross-party Treasury committee will hear from experts from the FCA and the Bank of England regarding the risks posed by cryptocurrencies and the "pros and drawbacks" of central bank-issued cryptocurrencies (CBDC). The session will also feature the testimony of an investigative journalist who has covered the investments made by British soccer fans under the influence of cryptocurrency advertisements.

Members of the Digital, Culture, Media, and Sport Committee initiated a public inquiry on the possible economic benefits and hazards of nonfungible tokens, or NFTs, and blockchain at the beginning of November.