UK FCA Binance Ban Not Prohibiting British Traders

Regulatory ban targets UK subsidiary from advertising and serving users, not the Binance parent

article-image

Source: Shutterstock

share
  • FCA warns a “significantly high number of crypto businesses are not meeting the required standards” for Anti Money Laundering Rules
  • UK ban hits Binance Markets Limited, a Binance subsidiary that would have launched a UK-based portal

It was business as usual for Binance and the digital assets market at-large on Monday after the UK’s Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) warned that Binance Markets Limited — a subsidiary of Binance — is not “permitted to undertake any regulated activity” in the country. 

In multiple statements released to the press, Binance said that the FCA ban only targeted a subsidiary, Binance Markets Limited, and the exchange is still accessible within the country. 

Stakeholders aren’t quite convinced that this matters.

“The FCA recently issued a notice to Binance that it cannot offer certain crypto-related derivative products to users in the UK. In practice though, it seems that this latest development will not have any direct effect on Binance users in the UK who will still be able to use products provided by Binance in other jurisdictions,” Elan Nahari, a contributor at Sovryn, the leading protocol for DeFi on Bitcoin, said in an emailed statement. “The limited number of companies that have received registration approval from the FCA suggests that the UK will find it difficult to attract companies on the forefront of financial innovation. ”

Kirill Suslov, CEO of trading app, TabTrader, pointed out that the regulator tends to be opposed to leveraged, high-risk trading versus digital assets trading itself. 

“Binance apparently was targeted because of its futures and margin trading,” Suslov said. “Spot trading in Binance shouldn’t be included in the ban really.”

As for the market? This didn’t seem to register. 

“On-chain signals indicate that strong hands are aggressively buying the bitcoin dip. The amount of stablecoins held in all exchange wallets has reached an all-time-high of $17 billion, suggesting that investors are getting ready to enter the crypto markets,” research firm Global Block wrote in a note. 

The price of bitcoin will likely end the US Monday trading session on a positive note up 5% to $34,300 according to CoinGecko. 

Tags

Decoding crypto and the markets. Daily, with Byron Gilliam.

Upcoming Events

Javits Center North | 445 11th Ave

Tues - Thurs, March 24 - 26, 2026

Blockworks’ Digital Asset Summit (DAS) will feature conversations between the builders, allocators, and legislators who will shape the trajectory of the digital asset ecosystem in the US and abroad.

recent research

Unlocked by Template.png

Research

The march toward an interoperable and onchain-by-default internet depends on reliable messaging and value transfer across heterogeneous domains. Crosschain protocols now process >$1.3T in combined annual transfer volume and secure tens of millions of user interactions, yet no single design dominates.

article-image

The goal, per Santiago Santos, is to make crypto a relatable piece of tech for people who may not even understand it

article-image

Stripe stablecoin unit aims to operate under a federal charter enabling regulated stablecoin issuance and custody services

by Blockworks /
article-image

Will TradFi make crypto better or create more problems than it solves?

article-image

Subtle decisions by risk curators saved Aave from significant turmoil

article-image

The new Rootstock Institutional unit aims to connect professional investors to Bitcoin-native yield and liquidity strategies anchored in BTC’s security layer

by Blockworks /
article-image

DOJ files record civil forfeiture against more than 127,000 BTC linked to scam activity

by Blockworks /