Ripple is applying for a crypto license in the UK
Payment protocol Ripple has recently applied for registration as a crypto-asset firm with the UK’s Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), a spokesperson for the firm told Cointelegraph. The company is also seeking a payments license in Ireland as part of its massive investment in the region.
The filing was filed following Ripple’s partial victory against the United States Securities and Exchange Commission over the classification of its XRP (XRP) token as a security. The decision, seen as a victory by Ripple and the wider crypto community, deemed the XRP token to be a security when sold to institutional investors but not to retail investors. The case is still open to appeal by the SEC.
XRP is not a security.
This victory for @Ripple is a win for the entire industry and a step toward regulatory clarity in the United States
A big thank you @bgarlinghouse, @chrislarsensfand @s_alderoty for their management and #XRPCommunity for their continued support.
— Ripple (@Ripple) 13 July 2023
More crypto firms are looking to the UK for regulatory clarity and a supportive business environment amid a wave of enforcement action by the SEC in the US.
Recently, venture capital firm Andreessen Horowitz (A16z) announced its first new office outside the US in London, following “months of constructive conversations” with policymakers and the FCA, citing a “predictable business environment” as a key reason for expanding overseas.
Several laws have been introduced in the UK Parliament with the aim of setting up a crypto-regulated environment in the UK. In June, a bill bringing cryptocurrencies under the same rules as traditional assets was signed into law after receiving King Charles’ royal assent. The new law empowers the Treasury, the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), the Bank of England and the Payments Systems Regulator to introduce and enforce regulations for crypto businesses.
In another recent development, lawmakers in the upper house debated draft legislation that seeks to expand the government’s ability to target cryptocurrencies used for illegal purposes. The bill contains provisions that the authorities must have greater flexibility when confiscating and recovering crypto-assets.
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