According to Cointelegraph, CryptoUK, the UK cryptocurrency industry self-regulatory organization, said that the strict supervision of the UK Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) is hindering the development of the cryptocurrency industry.
Since January 2020, companies doing crypto asset business in the UK must register with the FCA. However, the registration process is long and difficult, becoming a barrier for many businesses. In the past 12 months, the FCA approved only 4 of 35 applications, and about 87% of crypto registration applications failed. Between May 2023 and April 2024, the FCA received 29 applications, compared to 42 in the same period of the previous year and 59 the year before that.
International law firm Reed Harris revealed that the FCA takes an average of 459 days to process a registration application, which is equivalent to the time it takes to apply for a full banking license. Industry insiders are worried that strict regulation may cause the UK to lose competitiveness to more crypto-friendly regions.