What firms need to consider as the FCA Application Gateway opens
The FCA Application Gateway marks a significant point for crypto firms seeking authorisation in the UK.
One week before the gateway opened, Broadgate and London Blockchain Conference brought together senior legal, compliance and financial crime professionals from across the digital assets sector for a private roundtable in London.
The discussion examined FCA crypto authorisation from the perspective of firms preparing for the process. While application documentation formed part of the conversation, much of the discussion focused on what sits behind it: governance, senior accountability, financial crime controls, Consumer Duty, third-party dependencies and the resources required to support regulatory scrutiny.
UK Crypto Authorisation: The Final Readiness Check brings together the key insights from that discussion, with perspectives and quotations anonymised under the Chatham House Rule.
Preparing for FCA crypto authorisation
Readiness for UK crypto authorisation extends beyond preparing policies and completing an application.
The roundtable explored whether firms can evidence and defend the controls described in their submissions, whether senior leaders understand their regulatory responsibilities, and how policies correspond with the way a business operates in practice.
For international crypto businesses, another question emerged: how does the investment required for UK authorisation compare with the opportunity available in other jurisdictions?
What does the whitepaper cover?
The report examines five areas that featured prominently in the discussion:
- FCA application readiness: what sits behind the policies, documentation and evidence submitted during the authorisation process.
- Governance and senior accountability: how responsibility, authority and regulatory experience intersect within crypto leadership teams.
- Consumer Duty and customer journeys: how cooling-off periods, appropriateness assessments and other consumer protections can affect the customer experience.
- Financial crime and AML controls: emerging questions around identity fraud, blockchain analytics, transaction monitoring and outsourced providers.
- The commercial case for UK authorisation: how international firms are considering capital, compliance resources, timing and the UK market opportunity.
The whitepaper captures perspectives from professionals working directly with these questions, including areas where views differed and where the regulatory process continues to create uncertainty.
Download UK Crypto Authorisation: The Final Readiness Check
Fill out the form below and access the full whitepaper from Broadgate and London Blockchain Conference for a closer look at the governance, compliance, financial crime and commercial considerations discussed by senior professionals preparing for the UK crypto authorisation regime.