FCA Raids Three London Addresses Over Illegal Crypto Trading Operations
The UK's Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) has raided three London addresses suspected of running illegal peer-to-peer crypto trading operations.
The action, carried out on September 10, 2026, is the second coordinated sweep against this corner of the market this year, following an earlier operation in April that hit eight locations.
P2P trading refers to two individuals buying and selling cryptocurrency directly with each other outside an exchange's order book. However, doing it as a business in the UK requires FCA registration under the Money Laundering Regulations.
The FCA is concerned that unregistered P2P traders can provide a route for criminals to move and launder illicit funds. Steve Smart, the FCA's executive director of enforcement and market oversight, warned: 'Working with partners, we continue to track and disrupt illegal crypto activity. Anyone running an unregistered peer-to-peer crypto business should assume we are looking at them.'