UK regulator bans Binance from trading in the UK

The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), the financial watchdog of the United Kingdom, has ordered Binance, the exchange platform with the highest trading volume in the world, to cease all its regulated activities in the country for operating without authorization, according to this report. Sunday the Financial Times.

This is one of the most significant actions that any global regulator has taken against Binance and an example of their stance against the role of the cryptocurrency sector in illegal activities such as money laundering and fraud, as well as lack of protection. that consumers face.

The platform applied to become a registered cryptocurrency company, as is required of British groups offering digital asset services. However, the exchange platform withdrew said request last month due to the strict criteria of the regulatory body when approving practices to prevent money laundering and financing of terrorism.

In addition to the actions taken by the FCA, the regulator has stated that Binance has until next Wednesday to post on its website that it does not have its permission to conduct regulated activities in the UK and to “secure and preserve all records and/or or information (…) relating to all customers in the country from their systems” and put an end to any type of advertising and financial promotions.

Binance was established a year ago as part of a larger group to launch a UK platform, Binance UK. In order to operate in that country, the platform bought a financial company that was already registered with the regulator. The transaction was approved by the FCA last June.

This is not the first warning that Binance has received for offering products and/or services to citizens without the corresponding permits. This notice is added to the one made by Japan this week and to the April one from the German financial regulator, BaFin. The platform is also under scrutiny by regulators in other countries, including the United States and Germany. For its part, Binance announced yesterday the closure of its operations in Ontario (Canada) without specifying a specific reason.