Tag Archives: united kingdom

Popular UK-based financial institution National Westminster Bank (NatWest) has restricted the funds its customers can spend on crypto purchases to reduce their exposure to the volatile asset class. According to a Bloomberg report, NatWest account holders now have a transfer limit of £1,000 ($1,215) per day or £5,000 ($6,090) every 30 days into crypto exchanges. NatWest Restricts Customers’ Crypto Activity NatWest, the UK’s third-largest bank by market capitalization, said the...

The London-based fintech company that allows cryptocurrency trading – Revolut – saw a 33% spike in its revenue in 2022, said the firm’s CFO.  Its positive results come in spite of the crypto market decline last year and the overall unfavorable macroeconomic conditions. A ‘Strong Momentum’ Mikko Salovaara – Revolut’s CFO – revealed to Reuters that the company’s revenue surged to $1.03 billion in 2022.  He said the number of new subscriptions and business accounts has risen...

HSBC, Nationwide Building Society, and other banking heavyweights in the UK are reportedly implementing a new set of restricting rules aimed at purchasing cryptocurrency. The move comes amid a chaotic year for the crypto industry, which witnessed the failure of several industry giants. Same Old Song According to a Bloomberg coverage, the biggest banking institution in the United Kingdom – HSBC – banned clients from buying cryptocurrencies via their credit cards, citing...

The United Kingdom and its finance ministry is planning to lay the groundwork for new digital currency regulations following the collapse of popular digital currency exchange FTX. The United Kingdom Doesn’t Want Another FTX in the Books Financial Services Minister Andrew Griffith commented in a recent interview: Our view is that this reinforces the case for clear, effective, timely regulation and proactive engagement with [the] industry. This includes a proposal to bring...

The United Kingdom’s crypto and fintech industries saw investment dry up in the latter half of 2022 amid a combination of turbulent macroeconomic conditions and record-high inflation. Businesses in the region completed a total of 591 fintech deals in 2022, compared to 724 in 2021.  The Fintech Trajectory According to Bloomberg, the data comes from a report published Wednesday by the big four accounting firm, KPMG. Its numbers show a $22 billion drop in Fintech investment in...

A British pensioner living in Nottinghamshire parted with $207,000 after becoming a victim of a bitcoin romance scam. The police managed to restore some of the stolen funds and warned people to be extra vigilant with online dating due to the rise of similar frauds. The Latest BTC Romance Scheme The Nottinghamshire police said a woman in her 70s transferred over $200,000 to a suspicious bitcoin address belonging to an individual she was dating online. The person in question...

Wybo Wiersma – a 40-year-old Dutchman who studied at Oxford’s St Cross College – will serve a 54-month prison sentence for stealing £2,156,000 (more than $2.6 million) using a cryptocurrency scheme. UK detectives linked the scam to the man who used the pseudonym Norbert van den Berg in his malicious website and university coursework. ‘Greed and Dishonesty’ Behind the Scam Judge Michael Gledhill KC ordered Wiersma to spend four and a half years in prison for his offense. The...

According to an investigation by The Bureau of Investigative Journalism and the Observer, more than 168 shell companies in the United Kingdom are suspected of operating fraudulent crypto or foreign exchange trading schemes, around half of which are potentially linked to pig-butchering scams. In fact, these organized crime groups were found to be using the UK as a “virtual base” for their operations while exploiting lax regulations to conduct fraud on an industrial scale, the...

The government of the United Kingdom is willing to strengthen the rules on the local cryptocurrency sector to prevent another adverse event like the FTX collapse. The recently-appointed Prime Minister – Rishi Sunak – is known as an advocate of blockchain technology, arguing the country should emerge as “a global cryptoasset technology hub.” People’s Protection is Most Important Andrew Griffith – Economic Secretary to the Treasury – revealed the government’s intentions to...

UK’s Charity Commission announced inquiring into a charity called – Effective Ventures Foundation over its ties with FTX. According to the official press release, the charity reported its association with FTX as a serious incident because the bankrupt cryptocurrency exchange was its “significant funder.” The non-ministerial department asserted that trustees submitted an RSI and sufficiently performed their duties and responsibilities. While trustees have not been involved in...