UK FCA speeds up crypto approval after criticism

The UK Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) has pledged to speed up approval for companies involved in cryptocurrency trading after years of being accused of suppressing innovation by regulators.

Since 2020, companies seeking to run cryptoasset operations in the UK must register with the FCA and demonstrate compliance with the Money Laundering and Counterterrorism Financing Rules. So far, 55 companies have been added to the register.

However, industry groups complain about FCA reluctant to move quickly compared to rival jurisdictions. Both the EU and the US are moving fast to approve crypto funds and open markets for exchange operations to retail investors, while regulators in Dubai and Singapore are actively courting digital asset companies.

Faster approval after years of delay

The UK FCA has pledged to renew its approach to cryptocurrency registration. This has promised a faster approval and a more accessible process after years of criticism by the cryptocurrency industry.

“We’ve seen firsthand how even multi-billion dollar companies can spend years trying to secure UK approval,” said Simon Jennings, executive director of the UK CryptoAsset Business Council.

Former Prime Minister George Osborne, now Coinbase adviser, said, “The difficult truth is this about so many other things about codes and stupid things. We’re completely left behind.

Since April, the FCA has approved registrations of five crypto companies, including BlackRock and Standard Chartered, and has refused or seen withdrawal of six other companies. This has led to an acceptance rate rising to 45% over the past five years, compared to below 15%.

According to data released on Financial Timesthe average processing time for successful applications also drastically decreased. Companies registered in the past year completed the process in just five months compared to an average of 17 months for people approved two years ago.

David Gill, executive director of FCA payments and digital finance, said the agency “had made a conscious effort to put resources into this.”

“We have made some very important advances with increased approval throughout the work,” Geale was added.

The FCA introduced pre-approval meetings, roundtables and webinars to guide applicants through the process while encouraging businesses to submit more powerful applications. “What we tend to get is that the quality of our applications improves and certainly speeds up things,” Geale says.

Reduced application despite improvements

Although approvals are accelerating, the number of companies applying for registration is declining sharply. For the year ending April 2023, 46 applications were submitted. By April 2025, that figure had fallen to 26.

Also, approvals have slid from 8 in 2022-23 to just 3 in 2024-25, but have rebounded slightly over the past six months.

Industry observers believe the slowdown is due to companies delaying submissions ahead of the planned full cryptographic regulatory framework that is expected to be introduced in the UK next year.

“I don’t think interest in the UK has diminished, but I think it’s possible that some companies are trying to get stock and see how crypto regulations develop,” said Brett Hillis, a partner at Reed Smith.

The FCA itself suggested that a broader rule outlook could have an impact on timing decisions.

FCA’s recent efforts include inviting newly registered companies to share their experiences. Raphael Landesmann, regulatory advisor for the Crypto Trading Firm GSR, said he was being asked to advise others at the FCA workshop after successful registration in December.

“We’ve seen so much effort by the FCA in that regard,” he said.

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