By Michael Scott
OKX acknowledges the directive that unregistered crypto companies should cease any illicit financial promotions targeted at United Kingdom customers or face punishment.
OKX is the most recent company to embrace the United Kingdom Financial Conduct Authority’s (FCA) recently enacted crypto marketing guidelines as the nation advocates for more industry oversight.
OKX Pledges to Comply with Stringent Regulations Outlined by FCA
In September, the FCA offered a strict caution to crypto companies, stressing the importance of fair marketing and transparency. Further, organizations were reminded to ensure ‘correct’ risk cautions, and the regulator hinted at significant penalties for failing to comply.
Last month, the regulator said that out of 150 companies requested to participate in an indeterminate survey, only 24 had given feedback as of September 21. The situation raised concerns, evoking the need for FCA to offer its ultimate caution to different stakeholders.
As of last week, unregistered crypto organizations should cease any illicit financial promotions focusing on consumers in the United Kingdom. The firms can only offer financial promotions lawfully to clients if an approved entity approves their content.
Noncompliance could result in a two-year jail sentence. To embrace the currently implemented standards, OKX has introduced various modifications customized for its retail clients in the United Kingdom. Examples entail tapering the tokens on offer across the region from more than 100 to only 40 and integrating a famous risk advisory notice on its webpage.
OKX Creates Exclusive Channel to Distribute Information Regarding UK’s Regulatory Mandates
An exclusive OKX_UK channel on X, previously referred to as Twitter, has been created to distribute information concerning the United Kingdom’s most current regulatory mandates. The cautions by the FCA have compelled numerous crypto companies to cooperate in recent weeks. For example, earlier this month, Nexo, a Swiss-founded company, changed their offerings to Britain-based users by canceling cashback payouts to Nexo Card and Nexo Exchange deals.
Last week, Binance responded to the amended Financial Promotions Regime by saying it had launched a dedicated UK domain and partnered with Rebuildingsociety.com, an FCA-governed company, to ensure compliant communication and marketing materials.
OKX Remains Upbeat as ByBit Announces Exit
Retail users in the United Kingdom will be directed to the Binance website, displaying the Binance offering adhering to the nation’s guidelines. Others, for instance, ByBit, have opted to halt their services in the UK for an unspecified period, seeking to ‘proactively’ adhere to the guidelines and evade likely clashes with the regulator.
In August, PayPal declared a ‘brief stop’ of crypto purchases for its users in the United Kingdom, citing related regulatory considerations, with intentions to allegedly reconsider its decision sometime in 2024. A statement by the exchange showed that OKX will keep providing crypto services to clients in the United Kingdom.
Despite some exchanges deciding to halt services nationwide due to the new guidelines, OKX is more committed than before.