• The application window opened on 30 September 2026 and closes on 28 February 2027, per The Block's reporting.
• The full UK regime takes effect on 25 October 2027, as reported by The Block.
• Firms that apply within the window can continue providing specified cryptoasset services while their application is assessed, provided they meet transitional conditions.
• Registration under the Money Laundering Regulations is reported not to carry over, so each firm should treat its application as a new exercise.
• The Financial Conduct Authority is reported to assess consumer protection, safeguarding of customer assets, market integrity and financial resilience.

The UK's crypto licensing clock is now running. The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) began accepting cryptoasset authorisation applications on 30 September 2026, according to The Block, and the window closes on 28 February 2027. The full regime is due to start on 25 October 2027. For any firm that trades, holds, stakes or issues cryptoassets for UK customers, the gap between those dates is the planning period. The compliance work is the application itself, and the FCA's own gateway page is the document to work from.

The 28 February deadline is the one that matters

Applying inside the window is what keeps an existing firm in business. Reporting on the FCA's guidance says firms already active in the UK market that apply by 28 February 2027 can rely on saving provisions and keep providing services, including taking on new business, while the FCA assesses them, if no decision has been made when the regime begins. A firm that misses the date loses that cover and would have to stop UK activity until it is authorised.

Existing registration does not carry over

The Block reports that registration under the Money Laundering Regulations does not convert into FCA authorisation, so firms should treat the application as a new exercise. Registration has so far meant showing anti-money-laundering controls. The new regime is reported to test consumer protection, safeguarding of customer assets, market integrity and financial resilience. Those are prudential and conduct questions, and a firm cannot answer them by pointing to a past registration.

Activities in scope run past exchanges

Trading platforms are the obvious target, but the reported perimeter is wider. It covers issuing qualifying stablecoins, dealing and arranging deals in cryptoassets, safeguarding cryptoassets and arranging staking. The Block also lists admissions and disclosures. Payments and embedded-finance firms that touch stablecoin settlement or custody through a partner should map each activity to the perimeter. A partnership that leaves one of these activities unauthorised is a compliance gap, whatever the commercial arrangement says.

What firms should do before February

The practical sequence is to map each service to the FCA's perimeter guidance, decide who is the applicant in a group structure, and document custody and safeguarding arrangements before filing. Firms should also confirm they meet the transitional conditions attached to the saving provisions, because continued trading depends on them. Emma Banymandhub, chief executive of The Payments Association, said a well-run, proportionate process will be important to UK competitiveness. That points to what to watch: how quickly the FCA decides.