Licence or Exit by October 2027

Britain’s Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) opened its crypto authorization gateway on 30 September 2026; unlicensed activity becomes illegal from 25 October 2027.

The deadlines

The regulator said in its announcement that firms can now apply for authorization under the Cryptoassets Regulations 2026, built under the Financial Services and Markets Act 2000. Filings are due by 28 February 2027. From 25 October 2027, any exchange, custodian or stablecoin issuer serving UK customers without a licence is carrying on unauthorized financial business.

Dominic Cashman, the FCA’s director of authorization, said: “The UK’s new crypto regime will give consumers greater protections and firms a clear framework to operate in. Firms can now apply for authorization and start preparing for regulation.”

Applying from scratch

Firms already registered under the Money Laundering Regulations get no shortcut. The new regime goes well beyond anti-money laundering checks, and every firm must apply from the start for the broader Financial Services and Markets Act permissions. The FCA judges applicants on consumer protection, how they keep customer assets safe, market integrity and financial resilience, and approval is not automatic.

The rules also reach past exchanges to firms that hold coins for customers, stablecoin issuers and companies that arrange staking, and permanent minimum capital requirements reportedly sit between £75,000 and £750,000 depending on what a firm does.

Firms that apply on time can keep serving existing and new customers while the FCA decides. Late applicants may honour existing contracts only: no new customers, and no new deals with current ones, per the FCA’s guidance on how the gateway will operate. Any firm that never applies must wind down its UK business before 25 October 2027. The FCA has said only that it will rule on on-time applications before October 2027.