FCA Raids 8 Sites in First UK Crackdown on Illegal #P2P Crypto Trading
The U.K.’s Financial Conduct Authority targeted eight premises suspected of running illegal peer-to-peer crypto trading operations on Wednesday, marking the agency’s first coordinated enforcement action of this kind.
The FCA conducted the inspections alongside HM Revenue and Customs and the South West Regional Organised Crime Unit. At each site, agents issued cease and desist letters ordering traders to halt operations immediately, issuing cease and desist letters in the UK’s first P2P crypto crackdown.
SWROCU’s DI Ross Flay cited money laundering risk, with evidence from the raids supporting multiple criminal investigations.
Steve Smart, executive director of enforcement and market oversight at the FCA, said unregistered peer-to-peer traders are operating illegally and creating financial crime risks. “We will use our powers and work with partners to disrupt them,” Smart stated.
Detective Inspector Ross Flay of SWROCU pointed to money laundering as a central concern. Flay said the goal is to stop illegal traders from giving criminals a route to move, hide, and spend illicit funds.
The action was taken under the Money Laundering, Terrorist Financing and Transfer of Funds Regulations 2017.
The FCA has not named the individuals or businesses targeted in Tuesday’s sweep. Investigators have not said when charges, if any, will be filed. For U.S. consumers and investors watching cross-border regulatory trends, the FCA’s move signals that peer-to-peer crypto trading outside licensed platforms is drawing direct law enforcement attention in major markets.