Coinbase Acquires UK FCA's VASP Licence to Offer 'Better' Suite of Crypto Services

Coinbase has received approval to operate as a regulated crypto exchange in the UK. The country's Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) has granted the firm a Virtual Asset Service Provider (VASP) licence. The US-based exchange announced the development on Monday, stating that it would be able to offer additional services in the UK. As the country ramps up efforts to finalise legislation desgined to oversee the crypto sector, these firms appear to be eyeing the UK as a lucrative location to expand their crypto services.

Coinbase said that this licence will now allow it to offer a ‘better' suite of crypto products and services to retail and institutional investors in the UK. The exchange says it can now include fiat-to-crypto service offerings as part of its business expansion.

With the VASP licence, Coinbase claims that it has become the largest player in the digital assets arena in the British nation.

“The United Kingdom is our biggest international market, and this registration represents an important chapter in our international expansion strategy,” the crypto firm said on X (formerly Twitter).

Singapore, Bermuda, and France are other regions where the exchange has managed to secure official licences and approvals over the last two years.

UK's financial watchdog has officially added Coinbase to its list of ‘formerly registered crypto asset firms' under the name 'CB Payments Ltd'. The website also shows that Coinbase's UK office is registered in London.

“This firm is shown on the Register because it is now, or was previously, approved by the FCA (or relevant regulatory body). As a result, you may be able to complain about this firm to the Financial Ombudsman Service,” the FCA's website for registered crypto firms states.

The FCA also conveys that if these licenced firms were to go out of business owing money to the users, these users will not be able to claim compensation from the Financial Services Compensation Scheme (FSCS). Any crypto asset services offered by this firm are unlikely to be protected if something goes wrong, the authority warns.

For all crypto firms listed with the FCA, the body also provides information on the ‘clones' of these firms to keep members of the crypto community members informed.

Last September, the FCA had said that 90 percent of the crypto firms hat had filed for UK registration by that time were rejected because the firms did not show adequate security measures.

In June 2023, the UK regulators laid down several rules for crypto firms to abide by. These included the scrapping of "refer a friend" bonuses for crypto buyers along with mandating VASPs to issue risk warnings with their products.

UK regulators are planning to finalise the country's crypto legislation by 2026, according to a recent report.