The U.K.’s Financial Conduct Authority said there are 111 unregistered crypto-asset firms operating in the country, and they pose a risk to the broader financial system, according to a Reuters report.
- The FCA said since January, when it was appointed as anti-money laundering and counter-terrorist financing supervisor of crypto-asset firms, it has become compulsory for businesses to obtain full registration before they can begin trading.
- “We have a number of firms that are clearly doing business in the U.K. without being registered with us and they are dealing with someone: banks, payment services firm, consumers,” Mark Steward, the FCA’s head of enforcement and market oversight, said at an event organized by City & Financial, according to Reuters.
- Steward said the regulatory body is concerned about the unregistered crypto-asset firms operating as they pose a “very real risk.”
- Of the estimated almost 2.5 million Britons that hold crypto assets, many are new investors and not very knowledgeable about the associated risks, he said.
Source: Coindesk
