• The approval allows limited crypto-related activities but not full financial services authorisation.
• Registration confirms compliance with anti-money laundering and counter-terrorist financing rules.
• The approval supports Ripple’s expansion in regulated international markets.

Ripple has taken a formal step into the regulated UK crypto market after securing approval from the country’s financial watchdog.

The development places Ripple among a limited group of digital asset firms that have met the UK’s compliance standards, at a time when regulators are tightening supervision of the sector.

The move reflects how crypto companies are increasingly navigating jurisdiction-by-jurisdiction rules to maintain access to key financial centres.

For the UK, it also underscores efforts to bring crypto activity within an established regulatory perimeter rather than leaving it to operate on the margins.

FCA registration status

Ripple’s UK subsidiary, Ripple Markets UK Ltd., has been registered with the Financial Conduct Authority under the country’s money laundering regulations.

The update appeared on the FCA’s official register on Friday, confirming that the entity has satisfied the regulator’s requirements related to financial crime controls.

Registration under these rules signals that Ripple complies with UK standards on anti-money laundering and counter-terrorist financing.

Firms listed on the register are required to monitor transactions, carry out customer due diligence, and report suspicious activity.

For crypto businesses, this registration is a legal requirement to operate certain services in the UK.

Scope of the approval

While the registration allows Ripple to carry out specific crypto-related activities, it does not amount to full financial services authorisation.

The FCA’s approval is limited in scope and does not permit activities such as offering regulated investment products or providing broader banking services.

This distinction is central to the UK’s regulatory framework for digital assets.

Crypto firms can gain entry to the market by meeting baseline compliance requirements, but further permissions are needed as business models expand into more heavily regulated areas.

Ripple’s status reflects compliance with financial crime rules rather than a comprehensive licence.

UK regulatory direction

Ripple’s approval comes as the UK seeks to position itself as a global hub for digital assets while strengthening oversight.

Policymakers have been working to integrate crypto firms into existing regulatory structures, focusing first on areas such as money laundering and terrorist financing risks.

The FCA has adopted a selective approach to crypto registrations, with many applicants failing to meet its standards in previous years.

Against this background, inclusion on the register indicates that Ripple has cleared a relatively high compliance bar.

The process also highlights the regulator’s emphasis on governance and controls rather than rapid market expansion.

The post UK’s FCA grants regulatory approval to Ripple appeared first on CoinJournal.

• The exchange restarted access on Thursday, including spot trading across 100 currency pairs.
• FCA financial promotion rules introduced in October 2023 led several crypto firms to end UK operations.
• The UK government has said it intends to establish a crypto rulebook by 2027.

Bybit, the world’s second-largest cryptocurrency exchange by trading volume, says it has restarted services in the UK, nearly two years after tougher rules on the promotion and marketing of crypto products pushed firms to pull back.

The company, which says it has around 80 million users globally, relaunched UK access on Thursday with a set of products that includes spot trading across 100 currency pairs, reports CoinDesk.

The move comes as the Financial Conduct Authority continues to scrutinise how crypto services are advertised to British residents, while the UK government has signalled it wants a fuller crypto rulebook in place by 2027.

Why Bybit left and what changed

The FCA tightened its financial promotion regime for crypto advertising in October 2023, triggering a wave of operational changes across the industry and prompting several firms to end UK activity.

According to CoinDesk, Bybit said its return is built around meeting FCA financial promotion standards, with an emphasis on clearer communications and transparency for UK users.

The company is not licensed in the UK, but says it is operating within a framework designed to comply with the FCA’s requirements for promotions.

That framework matters because, under the rules, crypto marketing aimed at UK consumers must be approved by an authorised firm unless an exemption applies.

What UK users can access now

Bybit said UK customers can again use its services, including spot trading across 100 currency pairs, notes CoinDesk.

The exchange described the restart as a reopening of UK services rather than a limited pilot, positioning it as a return to the market after the regulatory shift.

Bybit’s policy team framed the UK as a market with a sophisticated financial ecosystem and a clearer regulatory direction, saying the exchange intends to introduce products tailored for UK users while prioritising transparency and compliance.

How Archax is enabling compliant crypto promotion

To support its UK activity, Bybit will operate and market its services via London-based crypto exchange Archax.

Archax holds a specific FCA permission that allows it to approve financial promotions, a route that can enable unauthorised firms to legally market and provide services to UK consumers.

Archax said it is supporting Bybit’s compliant access to the UK market and pointed to prior work helping other large exchanges, states CoinDesk,  including Coinbase and OKX, reach UK users without needing their own authorisation.

What the 2027 crypto rulebook signal means

Alongside the FCA’s stricter approach to promotions, the UK government has said it intends to establish a crypto rulebook by 2027.

That announcement has fuelled expectations of a more defined operating environment for exchanges, even as marketing standards remain a key gatekeeper for consumer-facing activity in the near term.

Industry watchers see the arrangement as another test case for how large global crypto platforms re-enter the UK without holding direct regulatory authorisation under evolving financial promotion oversight regimes globally.

The post Bybit returns to UK crypto market after 2 years appeared first on CoinJournal.