According to the Financial Conduct
Authority's (FCA) latest research on consumer attitudes and
behaviours towards crypto, 12% of UK adults now own crypto, up
from 10% in previous findings.
Awareness of crypto also rose from 91%
to 93%. The average value of crypto held by people increased
from £1,595
to £1,842. Respondents told the FCA
that information from family and friends was the most common
source of information for those who had never bought crypto. Only
1 in 10 people say they did not do any research before buying
crypto.
Around a third of people said they
believed they could raise a complaint with the FCA if something
went wrong and were seeking recourse or financial
protection. Currently, crypto
remains largely unregulated in the UK and high-risk. If something
goes wrong, it is unlikely you will be protected so you should be
prepared to lose all your money.
The research comes as the FCA has
started to share their approach to regulating crypto. The FCA has
also published an indicative roadmap of key dates for the
development and introduction of the UK's crypto regime.
The roadmap sets out a series of
focused consultations. This approach aims to make policy
development transparent and help people engage by making the
process more manageable and flexible for
all.
Matthew Long, director of
payments and digital assets at the
FCA,
said: “Our research
results highlight the need for clear regulation that supports
a safe, competitive, and
sustainable crypto sector in the UK. We want to develop a sector
thatembraces innovation and is underpinned by market integrity
and consumer trust.
“We're committed to working closely
with the Government, international partners, industry and
consumers to help us get the future rules
right.”
Notes to
editors:
-
Learn more about crypto and read crypto-related advice
for consumers.
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Contact the FCA if you would like an
embargoed copy of the documents -
press.office@fca.org.uk.
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Despite the FCA's limited regulatory
remit, the FCA continues to take action to make the crypto
market safer. This includes taking action against firms
illegally promoting cryptoassets to UK
consumers.
-
Following a change in legislation,
the FCA is responsible for regulating cryptoasset promotions.
This regime came into effect on 8 October 2023. In the first
year of the regime, the FCA has taken significant action
against firms illegally promoting to UK consumers. This
includes issuing 1702 alerts, taking down over 900 scam crypto
websites and over 50 apps.
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To help firms providing payment
services to crypto firms better understand the FCA's
expectations, it will publish a new
webpage. It sets out
the risks
regulated/registered firms could be exposing themselves to by
providing services to unregistered crypto firms who appear to
be illegally promoting to UK consumer. It also gives examples
of positive steps taken by regulated/registered firms to
address our concerns.
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The FCA continues to play its part
to raise awareness amongst consumers of the risks involved with
high-risk investments, including crypto. For example, with the
ScamSmart campaign and issuing warnings more quickly.
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Additionally, the FCA's £11m
InvestSmart campaign – which has been pushed out across social media
platforms – is aimed at helping consumers to make better
informed investment decisions and understand the risks
involved.
