UK Police Crack Down on Crypto ATMs, Regulators Deny Granting Approvals

The police authorities of the UK are conducting raids on crypto ATMs after the British financial authorities said they had not approved the installation of these machines. The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) of the UK has directed the law enforcement agencies there to spot crypto ATMs and disable them with immediate effect. The operation has first targeted the city of Leeds. The West Yorkshire Police’s Digital Intelligence and Investigation Unit is also part of this initiative.

While the UK has accepted the use of stablecoins in its financial system, the use of cryptocurrencies on a larger level is not entirely allowed there. The regulators are working on drafting crypto rules in order to safeguard the investors from the perils of the otherwise volatile industry.

Crypto-related companies that wish to operate in the UK are required to register with the FCA and pledge to comply with the country’s money laundering laws. The FCA claims that no crypto ATM installer has, so far, reached out for permissions and hence their operations in the UK are completely illegal.

“Crypto products themselves are currently unregulated and high-risk, and you should be prepared to lose all your money if you invest in them. We will continue to identify and disrupt unregistered crypto businesses operating in the UK,” Bitcoin.com quoted Mark Steward, the executive director of Enforcement and Market Oversight at the FCA as saying.

Crypto ATMs allow users to purchase Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies via debit and credit cards through the machine. Some also allow people to sell cryptocurrencies in exchange for fiat currencies.

In March last year, the British authorities had first raised objections against unregistered companies setting up crypto ATMs in the country.

At the time, over 80 crypto ATM machines from an operator named Gidiplus were deactivated.

The UK has maintained a strict approach in terms of keeping crypto promotional activities away from the masses, including the ban it imposed on advertisers working with crypto brands.

Last year in a survey, the FCA had discovered that majority people thought cryptocurrencies were being regulated after advertisements and crypto ATM machines became a common sight in parts of the country. This had alarmed the authorities which jumped into action.

It is noteworthy that in the last few months, the number of new crypto ATM machines installed around the world dropped drastically.

Only 94 crypto ATMs were installed in different parts of the world between July 2022 and January 2023, a report by CoinATMRadar had claimed in January.

While the UK continues to push back the uses of crypto ATMs, nations like the US, Australia, Canada, and Spain have welcomed these machines.