Category Archives: United Kingdom

Follow up on the UK FCA's regulatory developments regarding crypto assets, covering MLR registration, financial promotion rules, and compliance practice analysis.

Coinbase in the UK obtains MiFID license: Crypto trading platform leaps towards a licensed brokerage firm structure.

On July 7, 2026, Coinbase UK received a MiFID investment services license from the FCA, forming a triple-licensed structure with its existing EMI electronic money license and crypto asset registration. This license allows institutional users to access crypto, stock, and commodity perpetual futures, and retail users to trade spot stocks on the Coinbase platform for the first time, marking a leap for crypto platforms towards becoming full-fledged licensed brokers.

07
June
The UK's FCA has released a Mills review report: In the era of AI-driven agency finance, stablecoins and tokenized deposits are positioned as automated settlement infrastructure.

The FCA has released a 147-page Mills Review, the first systematic exposition of the institutional impact of agency AI on retail financial services, explicitly positioning systemic stablecoins and tokenized deposits as necessary settlement infrastructure for an AI-driven agent-driven financial system. The report adheres to the principle of human accountability in governance and proposes seven recommendations, including building agent-finance infrastructure and expanding AI Labs, providing a signal for licensed crypto institutions to serve as a testing ground for UK institutional practices.

06
June
UK election funding reforms tighten foreign donation compliance checks – the £10 first-year residency cap and company profit test have ripple effects on crypto political donations.

On July 6, 2026, the UK government announced an upgraded reform plan for election funding, extending the £100,000 cap on overseas donations to first-year residents, introducing a five-year after-tax profit test for company donations, and requiring candidates for the first time to prove the legality of their pre-election funding sources. The new regulations directly impact Reform UK's crypto billionaire donors Harborne (£12 million) and Delo (£4 million), marking an evolution in UK crypto political donation regulation from a temporary ban in March to a fully transparent, end-to-end framework.

06
June
Controversy over UK crypto political donations: Farage's undisclosed gift incident and progress of the parliamentary standards inquiry.

Reform Party leader Nigel Farage has been exposed for accepting undisclosed gifts from crypto mogul Harborne (£500 million) and convicted fraudster Cottrell (security, staff, accommodation), prompting the Parliamentary Standards Commissioner to launch two investigations. The incident touches upon the cutting-edge global regulatory issue of transparency in crypto political donations and could potentially impact the UK's crypto legislation process and the FCA's regulatory approach.

06
June
The UK's FCA has released a comprehensive regulatory handbook for crypto assets, outlining five policy statements and a 2027 compliance timeline.

2026年6月30日，United KingdomFCA发布五项政策声明(PS26/9–PS26/13)构成全球最全面加密资产规则手册，覆盖交易平台至稳定币发行人全链条。授权窗口2026年9月–2027年2月，全面生效2027年10月25日。稳定币资本降至1%，市场滥用条款首次覆盖加密资产。含United Kingdomvs MiCA对比分析。

04
June
UK National Payments Vision Update: FCA Licensing Compliance Framework for Tokenized Payments and a Multi-Currency Ecosystem

The core innovation of the PVDC update is that it no longer views "tokenization" as an additional layer to the existing payment system, but instead requires its inclusion from the infrastructure design phase. The document explicitly states that "programmable payments, including payment forms that rely on tokenization," are listed as potential product-level arrangements to support payment innovation in the UK.

03
June
Standard Chartered Bank: Trusted DeFi Protocols and Traditional Financial Collaboration Will Continue to Increase – A Compliance Analysis of Uniswap's Integration with Robinhood Chain

Geoffrey Kendrick, Head of Digital Asset Research at Standard Chartered Bank, stated that the market has underestimated the potential of partnerships between Uniswap and trusted DeFi protocols like Robinhood, and expects more licensed financial institutions to integrate DeFi protocols in the coming quarters. This article analyzes four unresolved issues regarding the existing regulatory framework for TradeFi-DeFi integration, starting from the MiCA/SFC/MAS licensing framework.

03
June
UK investors' class-action lawsuit against Binance and Changpeng Zhao seeks $2 million: FCA's derivatives ban and accountability for unlicensed operations.

Nearly 1700 UK investors have filed a class-action lawsuit against Binance and Changpeng Zhao in the High Court of London, seeking over £1.5 million in damages. The plaintiffs allege that Binance violated the FSMA by selling leveraged derivatives to retail clients without authorization from the FCA between 2019 and 2021. This case comes just one week after Binance's Greek MiCA license was revoked, highlighting the retroactive legal risks of operating without a license and the enforcement of the UK's ban on crypto derivatives.

01
June
The UK's FCA lowers the capital buffer for stablecoins to 1%: MiCA, offered at half price, aims to compete in the post-Brexit crypto market.

On June 30, 2026, the UK's FCA released its final rulebook for crypto assets, reducing the capital buffer for stablecoin issuers from 2% to 1%, only half of the EU's MiCA. Simultaneously, it eliminated the obligation to report redemption forecasts and allowed a 5% capital buffer.

01
June
The UK's FCA has released its final regulatory framework for crypto: the license application window will open in September 2026, and it will be fully effective in October 2027.

The UK's FCA issued its final cryptocurrency regulatory policy statement on June 30, 2026, requiring all cryptocurrency businesses to obtain new licenses by February 28, 2027.

30
June
The UK's FCA has released its final regulatory framework for cryptocurrencies: a unified licensing system will be officially implemented in October 2027.

The UK's FCA has released its final regulatory framework for crypto assets, establishing a unified licensing system covering prudential regulation, market abuse, and stablecoins. The mandatory licensing system will be implemented on October 25, 2027. The application window is from September 30, 2026 to [date missing].

30
June
New Developments in UK FCA Crypto Regulation: A CoinShares survey reveals a 52% blind spot in the wealth management industry regarding crypto assets, drawing attention to the 10% allocation plan in retail funds.

A CoinShares survey of 261 European wealth management professionals revealed that 52% of UK wealth advisors are unfamiliar with crypto assets for their clients, and 61% of firms lack policy guidance on digital asset investments. The FCA is considering a proposal to allow retail funds to allocate up to 10% to crypto ETNs, and Starmer's resignation has introduced new political variables into UK crypto regulation.

26
June
Wealth Management Blind Spots Under UK FCA Crypto Regulation: CoinShares Survey Reveals 52% of Advisors Unable to Monitor Clients' Crypto Assets

A CoinShares survey of 261 European wealth management professionals revealed that 52% of UK advisors are unable to monitor their clients' crypto assets, and 61% of institutions have explicit restrictions or lack internal guidance on digital assets. The FCA reports that 8% of adults hold crypto assets, yet proposes allowing authorized funds to allocate up to 10% to crypto ETNs—a significant gap between regulatory framework and institutional practice.

26
June
A former UK FCA policy official reveals a "huge gap" in crypto regulation: an in-depth analysis of the discrepancy between policy ambition and implementation.

In an exclusive interview with CoinDesk, former FCA policy officer Isadora Arredondo reveals the "huge gap" between the UK's ambitions as a crypto hub and regulatory enforcement. The triple whammy of Brexit, COVID-19, and the collapse of wealth management products has marginalized the FCA's crypto regulation; the UK is now adopting a dual-track regulatory approach—institutional friendly but retail-focused; BOE's new stablecoin regulations have shifted from individual limits to a £40 billion macro-level safeguard; and a comprehensive regulatory framework is expected to be finalized by October 2027.

25
June
Baillie Gifford, a century-old British asset management firm, launches tokenized bond funds on Ethereum and Solana: OEIC regulatory framework + BNY infrastructure.

Baillie Gifford launched the BAGEY tokenized bond fund, natively issued on the Ethereum and Solana blockchains, with the blockchain serving as the official register of holders. The fund adopts an OEIC structure regulated by the UK's FCA, with BNY providing the tokenization infrastructure and NatWest acting as custodian. This marks a significant step for RWA tokenization from proof-of-concept to a regulated fund structure.

22
June
The Bank of England has released its systemic stablecoin regulatory rules: a £400 billion issuance cap replacing holding limits and a 2027 implementation roadmap.

United Kingdom央行发布系统性稳定币政策声明及行为准则草案：储备资产上限从60%提升至70%United Kingdom短期国债，以每枚稳定币400亿英镑临时发行上限替代持有限额，计划2026年底定稿、2027年启动受监管稳定币运营。Coinbase与ClearBank高管对"临时"上限定义和资产支持要求表达关注。

22
June
The Bank of England releases its final policy statement on systemic stablecoins: £400 billion issuance cap and detailed 70/30 asset structure.

United Kingdom央行于2026年6月22日发布英镑计价系统性稳定币最终政策声明，将支持资产结构调整为70%短期国债+30%央行存款，以400亿英镑临时发行上限取代个人/企业持有限额，并建立法定信托机制与24小时赎回标准。《操作规范》草案咨询截至9月22日，受监管稳定币最早可于2027年起在United Kingdom合规运营。

22
June
Hussain v Fix, the first trial in the UK Central County Court involving Bitcoin debt repayment: highlighting the legal gaps in contract enforcement mechanisms following the confirmation of digital asset property rights.

On June 18, 2026, the Central County Court in London held its first hearing in Hussain v Fix regarding whether a court had the authority to directly order debt repayment in Bitcoin. The plaintiff argued that the defendant had failed to fulfill its obligation to reimburse business expenses in Bitcoin amounting to 7.806501396 BTC. The court recognized Bitcoin as property but preferred to convert it to British pounds, exposing a gap in the contract enforcement mechanism following the recognition of digital asset property rights in the UK Property Act 2025.

21
June
Archax launches real-time yield payments on tokenized securities with Hedera: USDC cash flow distributed second-by-second under FCA/EU dual licenses.

Archax, a digital asset platform regulated by both the UK and the EU, has launched a real-time streaming cash flow (RTC) feature for tokenized securities on the Hedera network. Interest payments are distributed to investors' wallets in USDC almost every second. Returns automatically follow the transfer of the underlying assets, marking a shift in tokenized RWA return distribution from periodic dividend payments to real-time streaming payments.

12
June
28.6 UK crypto holders launch nationwide movement: a regulatory consistency crisis stemming from systemic banking blockade of FCA-licensed exchanges and the interception of 40% of transfers.

On June 10, 2026, Stand With Crypto UK, backed by Coinbase, mobilized 286,000 members to file a formal complaint with retail banks, protesting the banking system's blocking of transfers from FCA-licensed cryptocurrency exchanges. A report by the UK Cryptoassets Business Council showed that approximately 40% of cryptocurrency transfers were intercepted or delayed. The UK Treasury has stated that it does not expect licensed institutions to be subject to such restrictions, but the bank blockade continues.

11
June

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