{
  "url": "https://openlegislation.uk/draft-financial-services-and-markets-act-2000-cryptoassets-regulations-2025/note",
  "json_url": "https://openlegislation.uk/draft-financial-services-and-markets-act-2000-cryptoassets-regulations-2025/note.json",
  "legislation": "ukdsi/2025/9780348277586",
  "legislation_title": "The Financial Services and Markets Act 2000 (Cryptoassets) Regulations 2025",
  "legislation_url": "https://openlegislation.uk/draft-financial-services-and-markets-act-2000-cryptoassets-regulations-2025",
  "path": "note",
  "kind": "note",
  "number": null,
  "heading": "Explanatory note",
  "text": "(This note is not part of these Regulations)\nThese Regulations establish a regulatory regime for certain cryptoasset activities pursuant to powers conferred by the Financial Services and Markets Act 2000 (c. 8)(“the Act”).\nPart 1 of the Regulations sets out general provisions, including citation, commencement, extent, and defines certain terms used in the Regulations. Regulation 1 provides that some provisions commence early to enable the Financial Conduct Authority (“FCA”) to give directions or guidance, make rules and to carry out any other preparatory steps in relation to the exercise of their functions in relation to these Regulations before most, if not all, of the remaining provisions come into force on 25 October 2027.\nPart 2 of the Regulations introduces two designated activity regimes under Part 5A of the Act: the first (Chapter 1) for public offers of qualifying cryptoassets and admissions to trading on qualifying cryptoasset trading platforms; the second (Chapter 2) covering market abuse (including insider dealing, the disclosure of inside information and market manipulation). It also sets out the powers of the FCA in relation to those activities. In relation to the first, it also sets out requirements for disclosure documents, the liability for untrue or misleading statements, and withdrawal rights for qualifying cryptoasset purchasers. In relation to the second, it includes requirements for market abuse-related systems and controls.\nPart 3 of the Regulations amends the Financial Services and Markets Act 2000 (Regulated Activities) Order 2001 (S.I. 2001/544) so as to specify certain activities relating to cryptoassets as regulated activities for the purposes of the Act. The new regulated activities include the issuing of qualifying stablecoin, the safeguarding of certain cryptoassets, operating cryptoasset trading platforms, dealing in cryptoassets as principal or agent, arranging deals in cryptoassets, and cryptoasset staking. These activities are subject to detailed exclusions. Carrying on these activities will require authorisation under Part 4A of the Act.\nPart 4 of the Regulations makes amendments to the Act in connection with the provisions of Parts 2 and 3 of the Regulations.\nPart 5 of the Regulations makes amendments to the Financial Services and Markets Act 2000 (Financial Promotion) Order 2005 (S.I. 2005/1529) to specify certain activities relating to cryptoassets as controlled activities and updates the controlled investment of “qualifying cryptoassets” for the purposes of section 21 of the Act. An invitation or inducement, made in the course of business, constitutes a controlled activity or to exercise rights conferred by a controlled investment is prohibited from communicating such an invitation or inducement unless they are an authorised person within the meaning of the Act or the content of the communication is approved by an authorised person..\nPart 6 of the Regulations makes related amendments to secondary legislation. The legislation being amended includes the Electronic Money Regulations 2011, the Alternative Investment Fund Managers Regulations 2013, the Money Laundering, Terrorist Financing and Transfer of Funds (Information on the Payer) Regulations 2017, and the Payment Services Regulations 2017.\nPart 7 of the Regulations provides a structured pathway for transitioning into the new regulatory regime for existing businesses.\nPart 8 of the Regulations requires the Treasury to review the regulatory provisions and publish a report setting out the conclusions of the review at intervals not exceeding five years beginning with the full commencement day.\nSchedule 1 sets out the exceptions to the general prohibition on public offers of qualifying cryptoassets under regulation 10.\nSchedule 2 sets out exemptions from liability to pay compensation provided for in regulation 14.\nAn impact assessment of the effect of these Regulations on the costs of business, the voluntary sector and the public sector is available from HM Treasury, 1 Horse Guards Road, London, SW1A 2HQ and is published alongside these Regulations at www.legislation.gov.uk.",
  "extent": null,
  "status": null,
  "version": "current",
  "annotations": [],
  "outstanding_effects": [],
  "provenance": {
    "source": "legislation.gov.uk",
    "source_url": "https://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukdsi/2025/9780348277586/note",
    "retrieved_at": "2026-10-30T14:38:18.364924+00:00"
  },
  "licence": "Open Government Licence v3.0",
  "licence_url": "https://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/doc/open-government-licence/version/3/",
  "attribution": "Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Source: legislation.gov.uk, The National Archives."
}