FCA opens crypto exchange authorization window, sets October 2027 exit deadline
The UK’s Financial Conduct Authority has opened the application window that will decide, within 18 months, which crypto exchanges, custodians and stablecoin issuers keep the right to operate in Britain. For institutional investors, the gateway forces every firm serving UK customers, from Coinbase down to smaller registered platforms, to prove bank-grade capital, safeguarding and resilience standards or exit the market by October 2027.
- Applications opened Wednesday, September 30, 2026, and must be filed by February 28, 2027, ahead of the regime’s October 25, 2027 start date.
- Firms need full authorization under the Financial Services and Markets Act 2000; existing anti-money-laundering registrations do not convert automatically.
- Firms that miss the deadline or fail review can only service existing contracts and must wind down UK operations before October 25, 2027.
- Feb 2027 deadline for firms to file FCA authorization applications
- Oct 2027 date the new mandatory licensing regime takes effect
The Financial Conduct Authority said in a press release that crypto firms operating in the United Kingdom can now apply for full regulatory authorization, a shift that brings exchanges, custodians and stablecoin issuers under standards long applied to banks and brokers. The application window opened Wednesday (September 30, 2026) and runs until February 28, 2027, ahead of the new regime taking effect on October 25, 2027, according to the regulator’s gateway guidance. Until now, most UK crypto firms needed only to register for anti-money-laundering checks.
FCA Requires Full FSMA Authorization, Ending AML-Only Registration
The new regime requires any firm carrying out newly regulated cryptoasset activities to hold permission under the Financial Services and Markets Act 2000. That covers exchanges, firms that hold customer coins in custody, stablecoin issuers and companies that arrange staking.
Registration for anti-money-laundering checks, the only requirement most firms have faced until now, “will not automatically convert” into the new license, the FCA said.
“The UK’s new crypto regime will give consumers greater protections and firms a clear framework to operate in. Firms can now apply for authorization and start preparing for regulation.”
Dominic Cashman, director of authorisation, FCA
Applicants are judged against four tests: consumer protection, safeguarding of customer assets, market integrity and financial resilience. Approval is not automatic, and firms that fall short will be refused.
Firms that apply within the window can keep serving customers, including signing new business, while the FCA reviews their filing. The regulator says it expects to rule on applications submitted during the period before the