UK's FCA Takes an Average of 459 Days to Approve Crypto Firms' Registration: FT

UK's FCA Takes an Average of 459 Days to Approve Crypto Firms' Registration: FT

The UK's Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) takes an average of 459 days to approve registration applications from cryptocurrency exchanges and custodian wallet providers, according to a report from global law firm Reed Smith LLP. The report, which analyzed the FCA's performance over the past three years, found that the regulator took an average of 459 days to process crypto company registrations. This is a significant increase from the FCA's average processing time for all other types of financial firms, which is just 141 days. The delay in processing crypto company registrations has reportedly led to a decline in the number of crypto firms applying for FCA registration. In the first half of 2022, only 10 crypto firms applied for FCA registration, compared to 50 in the first half of 2021. "The UK has widespread ambitions to become a crypto hub, but the time taken to register businesses is a roadblock to that vision," Reed Smith said in the report. The FCA has not commented on the report's findings. However, the regulator has previously said that it is committed to ensuring that the UK's crypto industry is "safe and well-regulated." The FCA's slow processing times have been criticized by some in the crypto industry. In a recent interview with The Block, Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong said that the FCA's "glacial" pace of approving crypto company registrations is "hurting the UK's competitiveness in the global crypto market." ```