UK Financial Regulator Orders Crypto Exchange Binance To Stop Activities In The Country

Britain's Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) has ordered the cryptocurrency exchange Binance BNB/USD to stop undertaking any activities in the country.

What Happened: In an official statement, the FCA on Saturday said the crypto exchange would not be allowed to undertake any regulated activities without prior written consent. 

No other entity in the Binance Group holds any form of U.K authorization, registration or license to conduct regulated activity in the U.K., the FCA said. 

"While we don't regulate Crypto-assets like Bitcoin or Ether, we do regulate certain Crypto asset derivatives, such as futures contracts, contracts for difference and options, as well as those Crypto assets we would consider 'securities'. We must authorize a firm to advertise or sell these products in the U.K.,"FCA said in the statement. 

According to the FCA, the exchange must make clear on its website, social media channels, and all other communications that it is no longer permitted to operate in the U.K. By Wednesday, it should remove all advertising and financial promotions in the country. 

Also Read: If You Invested $1,000 In Binance Coin One Year Ago, Here's How Much You'd Have Now

"A significantly high number of Crypto asset businesses are not meeting the required standards under the money laundering regulations, which has resulted in an unprecedented number of businesses withdrawing their applications," Bloomberg quoted an FCA spokesperson as saying. 

Why It Matters: Binance has been under scrutiny by regulators in many other countries, including the U.S., Germany and Japan. Various agencies are probing the exchange in the U.S. 

Last month, Japan's Financial Services Agency issued a warning against Binance. It said Binance offered crypto services without registration.

According to Crypto legal expert, Tether USDT/USD and Binance are likely targets for SEC lawsuits. 

A few weeks back, Silvergate Capital Corp SI, a crypto-focused bank, ended its partnership with Binance. Binance reportedly informed its customers that it would no longer support U.S. dollar deposits and withdrawals via Silvergate Bank over SWIFT.