The country’s market regulators have banned cryptocurrency exchange Binance from operating in the UK. This is the latest sign of the growing global crackdown on the cryptocurrency market.
Britain’s Financial Conduct Authority said on Saturday that Binance Markets Limited, the U.K. division of Binance, “is not permitted to undertake any regulated activity in the U.K.”
Since June 30, the company has provided cryptocurrency transactions to the UK through its website, and must add a notice in a prominent place on its website and app, displaying the following text to users in the UK:
Binance is the world’s largest cryptocurrency exchange by trading volume and plans to launch its own digital asset market in the UK. However, due to failing to meet anti-money laundering requirements, it is one of several crypto companies that withdrew their registration with the Financial Conduct Authority.
“Binance Markets Limited withdrew their 5MLD application on 17 May 2021 following intensive engagement from the FCA,” a spokesperson for the FCA told. “The action taken today on Binance Markets Limited has been in train for some time.”
The FCA spokesperson clarified that the scope of the ban was limited. Though Binance Markets Limited is banned from offering regulated services in Britain, non-registered firms can still interact with U.K. consumers. That means Binance could still offer Brits crypto trading through its website.
