Crypto vs Cash: 3 Clandestine Trading Posts Raided in London

Raids in London against cash for crypto. The Financial Conduct Authority, the British financial watchdog, has raided three peer-to-peer trading sites operating without registration in the capital. These shops exchanged cash for bitcoins or stablecoins over the counter without any identity verification.

So far, the FCA had mainly relied on public warnings and a blacklist of unregistered businesses. Its agents are now moving into backrooms, accompanied by the police.

Key Points

• The FCA raided three unregistered peer-to-peer crypto trading sites in London, according to CoinDesk.
• Engaging in crypto exchange activities without registration can lead to two years in prison and unlimited fines.
• Only about fifty companies are listed in the FCA's crypto register, with around 14% of applications accepted.
• The full licensing regime, integrated into the Financial Services and Markets Act, is being rolled out this year.

The FCA Moves from Warnings to Raids in London’s P2P Scene

Peer-to-peer trading refers to direct exchanges between two parties, without a centralized platform to maintain the order book. The version targeted in London resembles local commerce: a storefront, a Telegram or WhatsApp group, a bundle deposited on the counter, and cryptos credited to a wallet a few minutes later.

Fees are high, there's no banking trace, and KYC (know your customer, the identity verification of clients) is simply absent. This channel primarily serves those with cumbersome cash to offload.

The National Crime Agency dismantled two Russian-speaking networks, Smart and TGR, at the end of 2024, which converted cash from British traffickers into crypto. The operation Destabilise resulted in 84 arrests and the seizure of over £20 million in cash and cryptocurrencies.

Individuals exchanging bitcoins among themselves are not affected by these operations. The offense arises from conducting exchange activities commercially by a business not listed in the FCA register, regardless of the volume traded at the counter. The British regulator tightens the screws on peer-to-peer crypto exchanges -- Source: X Account

Crypto in the UK: FCA Registration, the Only Red Line

Since January 2020, any British company offering the exchange of crypto assets or wallet custody must register with the FCA under the Money Laundering Regulations of 2017. Failing to do so constitutes an offense punishable by two years in prison and unlimited fines.

The filter is tight: only about fifty companies are listed in the register, with an acceptance rate of around 14% since the regime opened, which has pushed more than one serious player towards Dubai or the European Union.

The judicial precedent has a name. Olumide Osunkoya operated 28 unregistered cryptocurrency ATMs, for nearly £2.6 million in transactions, before receiving a four-year prison sentence. No crypto ATM operator has ever obtained the green light from the regulator, making all machines installed on British soil illegally constructed, and the FCA is increasing action days to unplug them.

This pressure on clandestine circuits comes at a time when declared players are finally getting an entry point. The full licensing regime, which brings exchanges, custody, and stablecoins under the Financial Services and Markets Act, is being rolled out this year. Since October 2025, British retail investors can once again buy ETNs (exchange traded notes, listed securities that replicate the price of an asset) backed by bitcoin, after four years of prohibition.

None of the three London addresses were listed in the FCA register. The regulator has not announced any charges at this stage. The scale is known: two years of imprisonment for operating an unregistered crypto activity, and more if charges of money laundering or fraud are added, as in the famous case of Mr. Osunkoya's ATMs.

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