Key points

  • The FCA, HMRC and Metropolitan Police targeted three London premises in an operation conducted on September 10.
  • Cease-and-desist letters were issued at all three sites over suspected unregistered peer-to-peer crypto activity.
  • The FCA says no peer-to-peer crypto businesses are currently registered with the regulator in the UK.

Britain's Financial Conduct Authority has taken action at three London premises suspected of operating unregistered peer-to-peer cryptocurrency businesses. The regulator said it worked with HM Revenue & Customs and the Metropolitan Police Service during the operation, which took place on September 10 and was announced on September 17. Cease-and-desist letters were issued at each site, requiring the traders to stop any suspected illegal crypto business.

Why registration matters

Peer-to-peer trading allows individuals to buy and sell crypto directly with one another rather than through a conventional exchange. The FCA said anyone conducting that activity as a business in the UK needs the appropriate registration. It added that there are currently no peer-to-peer crypto businesses registered with the regulator. Registration under the UK's anti-money-laundering framework is intended to ensure that businesses apply controls designed to identify customers, monitor transactions and detect suspicious activity.

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A coordinated enforcement action

The FCA did not identify the premises or the people involved. Its announcement said the action was taken under the Money Laundering, Terrorist Financing and Transfer of Funds Regulations 2017. Reuters independently confirmed that the regulator worked with tax officials and police, and that cease-and-desist letters were delivered at all three locations. The operation focused on suspected activity; the letters and searches do not by themselves establish criminal liability.

Authorities focus on illicit fund flows

The regulator said unregistered peer-to-peer traders can provide a route for criminals to move and launder illicit funds while avoiding compliance controls. The Metropolitan Police highlighted the investigative challenge created by the speed at which digital assets can move across jurisdictions. The agencies framed the operation as a disruption measure within a broader effort to follow crypto-related money flows and strengthen their ability to investigate financial crime.

The action follows an April operation

This is the FCA's second coordinated London operation against suspected illegal peer-to-peer crypto trading in 2026. In April, the regulator and partner agencies targeted eight addresses. The FCA said evidence gathered in that earlier action is now supporting criminal investigations and other enforcement work. It also pointed to previous cases involving an unlawful crypto ATM network and arrests connected with a suspected illegal crypto exchange as examples of its enforcement activity.

What the UK framework covers

Crypto assets remain largely outside full financial-services regulation in Britain, but businesses can still fall within anti-money-laundering requirements and financial-promotion rules. The FCA said that position will continue until the UK's wider crypto regime takes effect in October 2027. Consumers can use the regulator's Firm Checker to confirm whether a provider is registered or authorised for the services it offers. Registration does not remove investment risk, but operating without required registration can trigger enforcement.

What remains unknown

The FCA has not disclosed the names of the three premises, the volume of crypto allegedly traded, or whether any assets were seized. No arrests or charges were announced in connection with the September operation. The next material development would be a formal enforcement notice, criminal charge or public outcome tied to the evidence collected. Any affected business would also have the opportunity to respond through the applicable legal process. Until then, the action is best understood as a regulatory disruption involving suspected unregistered activity rather than a concluded case.

Sources

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