LONDON: Many cryptocurrency firms are not meeting Britain’s anti-money laundering and counter-terrorism financing rules, the country’s financial watchdog said on Thursday, showing how some parts of the emerging sector are struggling to meet required standards.
The cryptocurrency world has been plagued through its 12-year life by lax standards on money laundering and other illicit activities.
While standards are widely seen to have improved, global regulators and policymakers have in recent months expressed concerns over the illicit use of crypto.
Since January, cryptocurrency-related firms have had to register with Britain’s Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) — which oversees their compliance with UK laws designed to prevent money laundering and terrorist financing — before doing business.
“The FCA will only register firms where it is confident that processes are in place to identify and prevent this activity,” it said.
Only five firms are registered with the FCA. As of May 12, another 90 have temporary registration, allowing them to continue trading while their applications are assessed.
The watchdog will extend the end date of its temporary registrations regime from July 9 to the end of March 2022, it said.
The FCA said 51 firms have withdrawn their applications for registration and can no longer trade. Firms that do not do so are subject to FCA enforcement, it added.
Crypto firms not meeting rules, UK watchdog says
https://arab.news/gbwsj
Crypto firms not meeting rules, UK watchdog says
Closing Bell: Saudi main index closes in red at 11,183
RIYADH: Saudi Arabia’s Tadawul All Share Index dipped on Monday, losing 44.79 points, or 0.4 percent, to close at 11,183.85.
The total trading turnover of the benchmark index was SR4.05 billion ($1.08 billion), as 69 of the listed stocks advanced, while 191 retreated.
The MSCI Tadawul Index decreased, down 6.63 points or 0.44 percent, to close at 1,504.73.
The Kingdom’s parallel market Nomu lost 328.20 points, or 1.36 percent, to close at 23,764.92. This comes as 22 of the listed stocks advanced, while 49 retreated.
The best-performing stock was Maharah Human Resources Co., with its share price surging by 7.26 percent to SR6.50.
Other top performers included Arabian Cement Co., which saw its share price rise by 6.27 percent to SR22.71, and Saudi Research and Media Group, which saw a 4.3 percent increase to SR104.30.
On the downside, the worst performer of the day was Arabian Internet and Communications Services Co., whose share price fell by 8.01 percent to SR207.80.
Jahez International Co. for Information System Technology and Al-Rajhi Co. for Cooperative Insurance also saw declines, with their shares dropping by 5.61 percent and 4.46 percent to SR12.79 and SR75, respectively.
On the announcement front, Etihad Etisalat Co. announced its financial results for 2025 with a 7.9 percent year-on-year growth in its revenues, to reach SR19.6 billion.
In a Tadawul statement, Mobily said that this growth is attributed to “the expansion of all revenue streams, with a healthy growth in the overall subscriber base.”
Mobily delivered an 11.6 percent increase in net profit, reaching SR3.4 billion in 2025 compared to SR3.1 billion in 2024.
The company’s share price reached SR67.85, marking a 0.37 percent increase on the main market.
