UK FCA Orders Operators to Shut Down Crypto ATMs

The U.K.'s Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) has warned that any crypto ATMs operating in the country are illegal and must be shut down.

Operators must be registered with the FCA to offer ATM services and comply with money laundering regulations, the FCA said in a statement on Friday.

As none of the 27 fully registered crypto firms have been approved to offer ATM services, any crypto ATMs in the U.K. are operating illegally. According to data by Coin ATM Radar, there are 81 bitcoin ATMs/tellers in the U.K.

The FCA made reference to Gidiplus, a firm providing crypto ATM services, which had its registration application rejected by the financial watchdog.

The firm took its case to court in order to continue its services pending its appeal. The case was dismissed as the judge determined there was a "lack of evidence as to how Gidiplus would undertake its business in a broadly compliant fashion."

As of March 7, 106 firms have applied for registration with the FCA to offer crypto services. Of those, 27 are now fully registered with 56 refused or having withdrawn their application.

The remaining 23 form the FCA's Temporary Registration Regime (TRR), which allows them to continue to operate while their applications remain under assessment. The deadline for their application approval is March 31.