UK struggles to enforce removal of illegal crypto ads

Illegal cryptocurrency advertisements continue to appear in the United Kingdom, despite efforts by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) to regulate the sector.

According to a report by the Financial Times, only 54% of the 1,702 alerts issued by the FCA between October 2023 and October 2024 resulted in the removal of non-compliant ads.

The remaining promotions remain active, highlighting enforcement challenges.

The FCA requires crypto promotions to receive approval from the agency or an FCA-authorised entity before publication.

However, no fines or criminal cases have been initiated against violators.

Instead, the FCA has focused on addressing financial influencers who promote unauthorised schemes online.

To bolster compliance, Google updated its advertising policies to align with FCA guidelines.

Starting Jan. 15, 2025, crypto advertisers targeting UK audiences must obtain FCA approval to run ads.

Google will permit advertisements for hardware wallets and non-fungible tokens (NFTs) as long as they do not involve trading, buying, or selling services.

Advertisers are also expected to comply with local laws in the regions they target.

The FCA recently issued a warning about a Solana-based (CRYPTO:SOL) memecoin project called Retardio (CRYPTO:RETARDIO).

On Dec. 16, the regulator cautioned UK consumers against engaging with the project, stating that it may be promoting financial services without FCA authorisation.

The FCA emphasised the risks of dealing with unauthorised projects, noting that consumers would not be covered by the Financial Ombudsman Service or the Financial Services Compensation Scheme in the event of disputes or company failures.