Financial institutions aligning to crypto custody regulation in the UK, US & EU

Written by Matthew Hodgin, Custodiex

The United Kingdom

In the UK, the regulation of crypto custody and related digital asset activities are overseen by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) as part of their Cryptoasset Regime. The FCA requires crypto-related businesses operating in the UK which hold or store private keys for the transfer of digital assets to comply with anti-money laundering (AML) and counter-terrorism financing (CTF) regulations whilst maintaining appropriate risk management systems and controls. To operate as a "cryptoasset custodian" in the UK, an organisation must obtain registration to operate from the FCA. The FCA Cryptoasset Regime is considered to have the strictest acceptance criteria of any global regulator with well-established firms such as Binance and Copper

(at the time of writing) unable to successfully register. The FCA maintains a list of registered firms and also those firms prohibited from registration in the UK. In addition to the FCA, the Bank of England and the Prudential Regulation …