Nomura-backed Komainu has officially joined the U.K. Crypto Register, a significant move for the crypto custody joint venture involving Nomura, Ledger, and CoinShares. The registration with the U.K. Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) was successfully completed on Friday, just ahead of the enforcement of the regulator’s new advertising rules, media reports said.
Under these regulations, firms need to be registered in the U.K. to have the authority to approve their own advertisements and appropriately communicate risk warnings to users. Failure to comply with these rules could lead to penalties, including imprisonment for up to two years.
FCA-registered crypto firms, including Komainu, must adhere to the country’s anti-money laundering regulations. As of now, there are 42 firms on the register, with the FCA having received around 300 applications since the registration regime was introduced in 2021.
In response to the new advertising rules, some unregistered companies have adjusted their services or ceased serving certain clients. For instance, Binance has sought the assistance of other companies to approve its ads. Coinbase, on the other hand, has added risk disclaimers to its website, while OKX has made modifications such as reducing its token offerings in the country.
The FCA has been proactive in updating its list of unauthorized firms and, on Sunday, added over 100 companies, including KuCoin and Huobi, to its warning list.
