: UK Crypto Rules Tightened: Investors Get Cooling-Off Period, Referral Bonus Ban

• The United Kingdom’s Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) announced that from Oct. 8, crypto services in the U.K. will face stricter regulations, including a “cooling-off period” for first-time investors and a ban on “refer a friend” bonuses.
• These regulations are intended to give people sufficient time and appropriate risk warnings to enable an informed decision-making process.
• Crypto companies in the U.K. are obligated to verify that individuals possess the necessary knowledge and experience to engage in crypto investments, provide transparent risk warnings and ensure their advertisements are fair, clear and devoid of any misleading information.

UK FCA Implements Stricter Rules For Crypto Services

The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) of the UK has announced new stricter rules for crypto services operating within its jurisdiction starting October 8th, 2021. The new rules include mandating a cooling-off period for first-time investors as well as banning referral bonus programs.

Cooling Off Period & Risk Warnings

The cooling off period is intended to give individuals enough time to make an informed decision when investing in cryptocurrency while also providing them with appropriate risk warnings so they can understand the risks associated with such investments better before making any decisions. Furthermore, FCA has mandated that crypto companies verify that individual investors possess adequate knowledge and experience about cryptocurrencies before they can invest in them.

Fair Advertising & Referral Bonus Ban

Crypto services must also ensure their advertisements are fair, clear and do not contain any misleading information or deceptive claims about cryptocurrencies or related products/services offered by them; otherwise they could be penalized by the regulator for such violations of advertising laws. Additionally, all referral bonus schemes have been banned under these new rules as part of measures taken to enhance investor awareness of potential risks involved with investing in cryptocurrencies.

FCA Working On Additional Guidance To Help Crypto Industry Meet Expectations

Sheldon Mills, executive director of consumers and competition at the FCA said that while it is up to individuals whether or not they want to invest in cryptocurrencies but research suggests many express regret over impulsive choices later on; therefore additional guidance is being developed help crypto companies meet FCA expectations with regards to these new regulations regarding consumer protection measures for cryptocurrency investments in the UK market.

Conclusion

Overall this is yet another example of increasing regulatory scrutiny faced by cryptocurrency industry across different jurisdictions worldwide which highlights importance of taking necessary precautions when it comes investing your money into any product/asset – especially those classified as high risk investments like cryptos – due to lack of government backing or protection if something goes wrong during investment process such as market crash etc..