UK targets illegal crypto trading in London crackdown

The UK’s Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) on Wednesday swooped on eight ​London addresses suspected of illegal peer-to-peer crypto trading ‌in its first such operation with other agencies, the financial regulator said on Wednesday.

Working with tax officials and police ​under money laundering and terrorist financing regulations, ​the FCA said it had issued cease and desist ⁠letters at each site.

“Evidence obtained during the on-site inspections is ​supporting a number of ongoing criminal investigations,” the FCA said in ​a statement.

Authorities want to prevent such traders from providing a route for criminals to move, disguise and spend money. Peer-to-peer traders, ​who shun centralised exchanges, have to be registered in ​Britain – and there are currently no FCA-registered peer-to-peer crypto traders here.

‌Authorities ⁠rank crypto assets as a high-risk investment in Britain, where they remain largely unregulated, except for under anti-money laundering and financial promotion rules.

“The resources and coordination ​deployed in this ​operation show ⁠that the FCA isn’t just making statements about its areas of focus, it ​is acting on them,” said Imogen Makin, ​counsel ⁠at law firm WilmerHale in London.

“It seems likely that we will continue to see similar crackdowns in future as ⁠the ​FCA remains focused on combatting ​the risks associated with crypto and financial crime.”