UK FCA Says About 8% of UK Cryptoasset Users Acquired Crypto Through Decentralized Exchanges in 2025

The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), the United Kingdom’s financial regulator, put decentralized exchanges at the point of purchase for about 8% of UK cryptoasset users in 2025, a figure included in draft guidance for firms that interact with DeFi.

Opened Oct. 21, the proposal explains how existing operational resilience, financial crime and money-laundering requirements apply to some regulated firms using decentralized finance. It does not create new regulatory requirements. The draft guidance for regulated firms using DeFi focuses on the service a customer receives, such as trading, transfers, lending, borrowing or staking, rather than treating the underlying protocol as the service.

Firms covered by the guidance would assess risks that could interrupt those services, including smart-contract vulnerabilities, oracle or infrastructure failures, and dependencies among protocols. Disruptions could prevent customers from accessing assets or delay transactions. The document’s examples are illustrative; firms are expected to weigh risks against their own business models and activities.

A companion consultation addresses exclusions from the coming UK cryptoasset framework, including some technical services that provide access to a third party or decentralized protocol. The broader regime is scheduled to take effect Oct. 25, 2027.

Comments on both consultations are due Nov. 18. The FCA plans to publish final DeFi guidance in the first quarter of 2027.