GSR Markets has received approval from the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) as a licensed cryptocurrency company

GSR Markets, a subsidiary of global cryptocurrency trading firm GSR, has received regulatory approval from the UK Financial Markets Regulatory Authority to operate as a licensed crypto asset firm.

The coveted license makes GSR the first cryptocurrency liquidity provider to win a dual regulatory license from the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) and the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS).

An FCA license allows GSR Markets UK to offer services such as over-the-counter (OTC) trading and automated execution trading to UK clients. This comes amid growing demand for regulated cryptocurrency trading solutions, supported by Bitcoin crossing the $100,000 mark in December 2024 and increasing institutional investment throughout the year.

GSR Group CEO Shin Song said the dual approval allows the company to “confidently expand services to enterprise and professional clients globally.” Jacob Palmesterna, CEO of GSR Markets UK, added that the regulatory approval enables the company to provide better customer support in the cryptocurrency market.

The FCA’s approval is consistent with its ongoing efforts to regulate the cryptocurrency sector to improve market safety and transparency, despite recent tough measures such as the UK’s ban on Pump.fun.

In Singapore, GSR obtained a full Master Payment Institution (MPI) license from MAS in April 2024, following in-principle approval in October 2023. The MPI license allows GSR to exceed standard payment volume limits, enabling the company to conduct multiple payment services in Singapore. Higher quantities.

Earlier in 2024, the financial watchdog reported that 87% of cryptocurrency companies that applied for a license under the country’s money laundering rules failed to gain approval in their most recent financial year.

Of the 35 applications received in the 12 months ending March 31, only four were able to qualify, according to the financial watchdog’s annual report.

Successful applicants BNXA, Binance’s payments partner, included; British unit of PayPal; and Komainu, a joint cryptocurrency custodial project Nomura. The remaining applications were rejected or withdrawn due to lack of the necessary elements.

Since taking over the role of supervising cryptocurrency companies under anti-money laundering regulations in 2020, the FCA has received 359 applications but granted money laundering registration to only 44 companies.

The regulatory body is awaiting new legislation that would allow it to fully authorize companies to operate in the country. However, this process may face delays, as the newly elected Labor government has paused its cryptocurrency plans.

The difficult registration process has prompted some cryptocurrency companies to do so Leaving the UK. In search of easier registration processes elsewhere. Complaints include long wait times, lack of feedback, and what some describe as unfair treatment by the regulator.