The latest compliance news: regulatory developments, punishments, guidance, permissions and new product and service offerings.

Financial Conduct Authority
The Financial Conduct Authority has set up a registration regime to allow existing crypto asset firms, which have applied to be registered with the FCA, to continue trading. 

The regulator is advising clients of firms that should have applied to the FCA, but have not done so, to withdraw their crypto assets or money before 10 January next year. 

Since 10 January this year, the FCA has been the anti-money laundering and counter-terrorist financing supervisor for these types of business, which includes firms that exchange money to and from crypto assets - such as bitcoin - and those that safeguard their customers’ assets. From this date, ‘existing crypto asset businesses’ (firms operating immediately before 10 January 2020) have had to comply with the laws fighting money laundering. Such firms were required to be registered with the FCA by 10 January 2021.

New businesses (which began operating after 10 January 2020), are required to obtain full registration with the FCA before conducting business. 

The Temporary Registration Regime is for existing crypto asset businesses which have applied for registration before 16 December 2020, and whose applications are still being assessed. This is to enable those existing businesses to continue to trade after 9 January 2021 until 9 July 2021, pending the FCA’s determination of their application, the FCA said.