UK Regulator Bans Crypto ATMs: 'People Should Be Prepared To Lose All Their Money'

United Kingdom financial regulator Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) has ordered all cryptocurrency automated teller machines (ATMs) — machines autonomously selling cryptocurrency, usually Bitcoin BTC/USD — to be shut down.

What Happened: According to data from Coin ATM Radar, there were about 80 crypto ATMs in the U.K. as of Friday — but soon there will be none. As of press time, this number is already down to 41.

A Fortune report on Friday indicated that none of the crypto ATMs operating in the U.K. are registered with the FCA, and consequently the regulator pointed out that "any of them operating in the U.K. are doing so illegally, and consumers should not be using them."

The statement cited crypto ATM provider Gidiplus which was rejected from registering its business. The company appealed to the Upper Tribunal, a court that hears appeals in the U.K., to be able to continue operations, but that appeal was denied by a judge over "lack of evidence as to how Gidiplus would undertake its business in a broadly compliant fashion."

See Also: HOW TO BUY CRYPTOCURRENCY IN THE UK

The FCA announced it will contact companies operating crypto ATMs and order them to shut down the machines or face enforcement actions.

"We regularly warn consumers that crypto assets are unregulated and high-risk, which means people are very unlikely to have any protection if things go wrong," the regulator wrote. "So people should be prepared to lose all their money if they choose to invest in them."

Photo: Courtesy of ajay_suresh on Flickr