Last week, crypto exchange Binance announced plans to comply with stricter rules from the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) of the United Kingdom on how crypto assets are advertised to consumers in the region. Part of those compliance plans included partnering with FCA-authorized firm Rebuildingsociety.com to approve its U.K. promotions.
On Tuesday, the FCA prohibited Rebuildingsociety.com from making such approvals, creating an additional hurdle for Binance as it tries to expand its presence in the U.K.
The new FCA rules went into effect on Oct. 8 but were alluded to months ago. Some crypto firms opted to pause operations in the U.K., while Binance, the largest crypto exchange in the world, took steps to comply through the partnership and the establishment of a new U.K. domain.
“Binance has invested an enormous amount of time and resources in ensuring that www.Binance.com/en-GB is positioned to comply with the detailed requirements of the U.K.’s Financial Promotions Regime. We have implemented all necessary restrictions for U.K. users and partnered with an FCA-authorised firm, Rebuildingsociety.com Limited, in order to meet our obligations,” said a Binance spokesperson in an email to Unchained.
The spokesperson noted that the FCA has issued warnings against more than 140 firms for breaches of the new Financial promotions rules. Binance was not on that list, stating it “is a testament to the processes and procedures it has implemented to comply with requirements.”
The reason for the FCA’s restriction wasn’t clear. According to a page on the FCA website, Rebuildingsociety.com has until Wednesday to withdraw any existing promotional approvals and pull any advertisements. The firm has until Friday to notify the FCA in writing that the actions were taken.
