UK Regulator Warns Exchange FTX Is Providing Services Without Authorization

[bbc.reporter]

This is head shaking. If FTX, only one of the very few exchanges that is working closely with regulators is being targetted as providing services in the United Kingdom without authoritization, what does this imply with those other exchanges that avoid working with regulators?

Is this another government extortion scheme again? This would not be shocking hehehe.



The U.K. Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) published a warning on its website Friday regarding crypto exchange FTX. The regulator detailed:

We believe this firm may be providing financial services or products in the U.K. without our authorization.

The FCA explained that FTX is not authorized but is targeting investors in the U.K. Firms carrying out specific crypto asset activities in the U.K. must comply with the amended “Money Laundering, Terrorist Financing and Transfer of Funds (Information on the Payer) Regulations,” and register with the FCA.

Source https://news.bitcoin.com/uk-regulator-warns-crypto-exchange-ftx-is-providing-services-without-authorization/

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[bittraffic]

FTX probably expected this sort of attack from authorities as they saw Binance get entangled with such pressure. They wouldn't call it extortion but its the same that they have to be regulated also not just in UK but also by the regulators of other countries because they need to comply in order to operate legally.

These are centralized exchanges, for now, dealing with DEX will be more disturbing I guess.

[NotATether]

I think the FCA does that with most of the other big exchanges.

Binance literally had to make a .co.uk domain that only had the FCA notice on it when the FCA told them they were providing services without authorization.

In general, I believe they are demanding these exchanges get FCA approval to operate there.

[bbc.reporter]

FTX probably expected this sort of attack from authorities as they saw Binance get entangled with such pressure. They wouldn't call it extortion but its the same that they have to be regulated also not just in UK but also by the regulators of other countries because they need to comply in order to operate legally.

These are centralized exchanges, for now, dealing with DEX will be more disturbing I guess.

What is head shaking with this news development is FTX is an exchange that works very closely with regulators from different jurisdictions. It is what gives them their advantage against their competitors. This might be extortion. It would also not be shocking if crypto exchanges in the United Kingdom are classified more closer to gambling sites than brokerage firms.

[Darker45]

This is head shaking. If FTX, only one of the very few exchanges that is working closely with regulators is being targetted as providing services in the United Kingdom without authoritization, what does this imply with those other exchanges that avoid working with regulators?

Is this another government extortion scheme again? This would not be shocking hehehe.

How about we simply take the case as it is? It's simply a case of a financial company operating within the UK that is not registered or authorized with the country's top financial regulator. That's just it.

Whether or not the government has ulterior motives in pointing this out against the said company, that would be another story. The established fact is that FTX is operating even if it is not authorized to operate in the UK. So FTX will have to deal with this.

[NeuroticFish]

What is head shaking with this news development is FTX is an exchange that works very closely with regulators from different jurisdictions

I'd guess that they've missed something (or they're simply late with some papers) and FCA took the opportunity to bash them because, you know, crypto.
There may be that FTX has to voluntarily send all the KYC details over certain turnover, there may be that FTX has to send all UK users' financial reports to the authorities by default and they didn't... it's difficult to please the authorities and, as I said, probably FTX has missed something.

FTX may lose a few potential customers because of this, but imho it's nothing big actually (neither the problem, nor the loss).

[Potato Chips]

I'd guess that they've missed something (or they're simply late with some papers) and FCA took the opportunity to bash them because, you know, crypto.

Apparently, FCA has listed phone numbers from scammers so I wouldn't be surprised if there were something wrong/missing with other information they have on ftx.

A spokesperson for FTX said the firm is aware of the notice, but added that the FCA had listed an incorrect phone number for the exchange.“We’re looking into it and communicating with regulators; we believe that a scammer is impersonating FTX,” the spokesperson said by email. “The phone numbers listed by the FCA are not from FTX and are listed as a crypto scam.

”Following FTX’s statement, an FCA spokesperson said: “Given the risks to consumers from unregistered or scam firms it’s important we issue warnings as quickly as possible and will issue updates if further information comes to light.”

I also noticed the terms “we believe” and “may be” but it's possible it's just be for courtesy.

[bbc.reporter]

What is head shaking with this news development is FTX is an exchange that works very closely with regulators from different jurisdictions

I'd guess that they've missed something (or they're simply late with some papers) and FCA took the opportunity to bash them because, you know, crypto.
There may be that FTX has to voluntarily send all the KYC details over certain turnover, there may be that FTX has to send all UK users' financial reports to the authorities by default and they didn't... it's difficult to please the authorities and, as I said, probably FTX has missed something.

FTX may lose a few potential customers because of this, but imho it's nothing big actually (neither the problem, nor the loss).

This might also be because Sam Bankman-Fried has become the next target after CZ because FTX has become so big and influential in the cryptospace and this influence is beginning to flow into traditional finance. It also does not help Sam that he has $22 billion under his control. The government might want much of this hehehehe.



The next Warren Buffett: Why the world is going crazy over the 30-year-old billionaire

How do you picture a multi-billionaire? They have luxury homes, cars, buildings, yachts, and several workers, Right? But Samuel Bankman-Fried breaks all those barriers and appears to be the world’s most humble billionaire who believes in donating all his wealth. He is the founder and CEO of FTX, the best cryptocurrency exchange ever built to trade in derivatives. At just the age of 30, Samuel Bankman-Fried has amassed over $22 billion, making him the youngest crypto billionaire in the world.

Source https://dazeinfo.com/2022/08/05/the-next-warren-buffett-why-the-world-is-going-crazy-over-the-30-year-old-billionaire/

[sunsilk]

Well, just like what happened to Binance. FTX would just act on what's needed to be done and they'll comply to this warning that the UK has imposed onto them.

Whenever a business is thriving and becoming popular, you'll see them try to gain their attention and it's just all about licensing, registrations, etc. and other fees that they can snuck to them.

[mindrust]

Using decentralized exchanges is not a choice anymore, it is a must. It didn't surprise me though. This was going to happen sooner or later. The exchanges are centralized entities and the government is the biggest partner of any company out there. There is no exit from this unless you come up with something like bitcoin which is fully decentralized. If there is no owner, no CEO, no company then there is no tax, no regulations, no law.

[stompix]

Is this another government extortion scheme again? This would not be shocking hehehe.

What extortion?
Are they holding a license for their activities, if so yes it's no extortion it's an abuse of power, but if they don't it's something the FCA should do as that's their job. So, has FTX a license, if not why should they be allowed to do it? They just managed to get a Cyprus license that isn't worth the paper on which it's printed and now they think, well if Biancne managed to trick everyone they are based in Malta and full license and regulated and nobody did shit, why can't we do the same?

I'm really getting tired of those exchanges bitching about everything when all they do is fleece their users with fees after fees, push some shitty tokens down our throats by charging 10x for Bitcoins withdrawals,  spending millions in creating some "stable" coins but when it comes to implementing something like Lighting network....crickets!

[bbc.reporter]

@stompix. Agreed that extortion might be the wrong word to use, however, the argument is the same. The economy must be very bad if they begin going after cryptoexchanges again to collect fees and fines hehehe. But the economy in the United Kingdom might not be as bad as the economy of America. The American regulators have begun to crackdown on smaller cryptoprojects hehehehe.



The Commodity Futures Trading Commission has issued an order filing and settling charges against blockchain software protocol bZeroX and its founders, the CFTC announced in a press release Thursday.
The order penalizes the protocol and its founders Tom Bean and Kyle Kistner $250,000 for offering illegal, off-exchange trading of digital assets, registration violations and neglecting to adopt a customer ID program required by the Bank Secrecy Act compliance program.

The CFTC has simultaneously filed a civil enforcement action charging the Ooki DAO, the successor to bZeroX, with violating the same laws as bZeroX. It seeks restitution, disgorgement, civil monetary penalties, trading and registration bans and injunctions against further violations.

Source https://www.coindesk.com/policy/2022/09/22/cftc-penalizes-blockchain-protocol-250k-files-action-against-successor-dao/

[stompix]

@stompix. Agreed that extortion might be the wrong word to use, however, the argument is the same. The economy must be very bad if they begin going after cryptoexchanges again to collect fees and fines hehehe. But the economy in the United Kingdom might not be as bad as the economy of America. The American regulators have begun to crackdown on smaller cryptoprojects hehehehe.

FTX had an income of 217 million a year, Shell had 20.6 billion, do you realize what drop in the ocean FTX is?
Besides, it wouldn't be normal, FTX is making money with UK citizens' funds, it's not about getting extra revenue it's about taxing what's normal! Furthermore, this isn't even about taxing, they clearly said they don't want to operate them here without a license, so, in short, we don't give a damn about you go and do business in the Bahamas. If they wanted to go after crypto money in taxes they would have raised taxes and gotten rid of the nontaxable level, right now crypto income is taxed at 10%, and capital gains on residential is at 18/28% for example. Disable tinfoil hat mode!  

[bbc.reporter]

Agreed. However, the argument is also because FTX belongs to an industry where it does not have clear regulations. Regulators like to squeeze money from opportunites that bear the lowest hanging fruit. It will not be shocking if they began doing more of this in this economy hehehehe. Similar to what @NeuroticFish said, because you know, crypto. I am also quite certain that you would agree with me that the government cannot be completely trusted.

[royalfestus]

Using decentralized exchanges is not a choice anymore, it is a must. It didn't surprise me though. This was going to happen sooner or later. The exchanges are centralized entities and the government is the biggest partner of any company out there. There is no exit from this unless you come up with something like bitcoin which is fully decentralized. If there is no owner, no CEO, no company then there is no tax, no regulations, no law.

I really appreciate the provision of the decentralized exchanges in countries with strong regulation for cryptocurrency but I want to know how the coins are converted to fiat without the government monitoring one holding as a DEX trader and how to escape such a big tax from banks from trading?
Are there chances of getting my money in fiat after trade?
what are the most traded stable coins in UK, Canada and USA at the moment to fiat?

[bbc.reporter]

News update.

There another securities regulator that is going to investigate FTX and Sam Bankman-Fried and it will be the a Texas securities regulator. There was not much details that were shared, however, it implied that it might be something with Voyager. FTX and Alameda Research was reported to have made loans from Voyager that remain unpaid.



FTX US and its founder Sam Bankman-Fried are under investigation by Texas’ securities regulator, marking yet another expansion of enforcement agencies’ probes into the crypto industry’s activities.

The investigation was detailed in a late Friday filing by Texas State Securities Board enforcement director Joe Rotunda in the bankruptcy case of Voyager Digital VYGVQ –18.29%  “The Enforcement Division is now investigating FTX Trading, FTX US, and their principals, including Sam Bankman-Fried,” Rotunda said in the filing.

Source https://www.barrons.com/articles/ftx-us-sam-bankman-fried-probe-securities-regulator-51666020282


Will this cause another panic in the cryptospace similar to Luna panic and 3 Arrows Capital panic?

[NotATether]

Will this cause another panic in the cryptospace similar to Luna panic and 3 Arrows Capital panic?

No.

To me, it looks stupid for them to buy Voyager in the first place because this is the only thing they were going to get out of it in the short term. Unless these guys think lending platforms will rise again (after another halvening) so they can pull in the scraps while that market is still exploitable - and sadly this is what is most likely to happen.