UK Parliamentary Group Launches Inquiry into Banking Barriers for Crypto Businesses

A United Kingdom parliamentary group has launched an inquiry into whether crypto businesses and consumers face barriers to banking services, including account access and restrictions on crypto-related transactions.

On Monday, the Crypto and Digital Assets All-Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) said that it would examine how the restrictions affect investment, competition and economic growth. The group said it would assess whether the restrictions are proportionate.

Written submissions from banks, payment providers, crypto firms and other stakeholders are open until Aug. 31, after which the group plans to publish its findings and recommendations.

A January survey by the UK Cryptoasset Business Council (UKCBC) found that 10 crypto exchanges said banks blocked or delayed 40% of transactions to crypto platforms. According to the survey, 70% of respondents said the restrictions had reduced their willingness to invest, expand or hire in the UK.

Crypto firms say restrictions are pushing investment abroad

The UKCBC survey included Coinbase, Kraken, Gemini, OKX, Bitpanda, Luno, Uphold, Wirex, Zumo and Xapo Bank. Eight of the 10 respondents reported an increase in customers experiencing blocked or limited transfers over the previous year. Seven described the UK banking environment for digital asset businesses as becoming more “hostile.”

An unnamed exchange said it observed nearly 1 billion British pounds (about $1.35 billion) in transactions declined by banks over a year. The figure covered rejected card payments and transfers initiated through open banking. Transactions that were abandoned or blocked through other channels were excluded.

The UKCBC called on the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) to require banks to distinguish between exchanges based on their regulatory status, governance and fraud controls instead of applying the same restrictions to every platform.

Yuriy Brisov, a partner at London-based consultancy firm Digital & Analogue Partners, told Cointelegraph that banks have legitimate obligations to manage fraud and money-laundering risks, but said their controls should distinguish between cases by risk levels.

“Proportionality has a simple test. Does the measure distinguish a high-risk case from a low-risk one? These measures do not,” Brisov said.

Brisov pointed to blanket policies and fixed transaction caps that can apply regardless of whether funds are being sent to an FCA-registered exchange or an unlicensed offshore platform.

UK’s reimbursement rules for authorized push payment fraud may give banks a financial incentive to block crypto-linked transactions rather than assess them individually. Since October 2024, payment providers have generally been required to reimburse eligible fraud victims for losses of up to 85,000 British pounds per claim.

UK crypto licensing raises banking-access question

The UK parliamentary group’s inquiry comes ahead of the FCA beginning to accept authorization applications from crypto firms on Sept. 30.

The application window creates a contradiction between the government’s ambition to establish a global crypto hub and the continued use of banking restrictions against exchanges, including businesses already registered with the FCA, according to Brisov.

“Once the regulator has licensed a firm, a bank cannot claim that firm’s risk is unknowable,” he said. “If it still treats the firm as untouchable, supervisors should ask for the reasons in writing.”

HM Treasury laid its Cryptoassets Regulations before Parliament in December 2025. The full regime is expected to take effect in October 2027.

Brisov said regulatory authorization would have limited practical value if licensed crypto businesses remained unable to access the banking system. “A country that calls itself a crypto hub cannot keep its payment system closed to the industry it licenses,” he said.