What UK Banks Are Banning Crypto?
Written by, Marija Petkova
Updated April, 18, 2022
More and more banks are blocking payments to cryptocurrency trading platforms to protect their customers following a dramatic spike in investment scam losses. Read on and find out what UK banks are banning crypto.
Which UK banks are banning crypto?
Let’s take a look at which UK banks ban crypto and the reasons they are doing so. Some of the banks following this trend are:
- Natwest
- Barclays
- TSB
- Monzo
- Lloyds bank
- HSBC
- Santander
- Metro Bank.
Natwest
Business banking – prohibited
Personal banking – under review, Binance prohibited
Natwest will not accepNatwest will not accept and will terminate its business relationship with any UK business receiving or considering accepting crypto as a form of payment. They have warned personal banking customers that they will conduct extra financial crime checks on those who want to take part in using cryptocurrencies. Transfers through Binance, the largest crypto trader, have been strictly prohibited.
Barclays
Business banking – under review
Personal banking – under review
Even though Barclays has begun taking measures to ban crypto buying, it looks like they are only blocking money transfers to some exchanges including Binance and SwissBorg. They blocked debit cards and credit card payments to the Binance trading platform. They were in business with Coinbase until 2019 but ended the working relationship due to money laundering concerns.
This is quite similar to the Royal Bank of Scotland, which hasn’t completely blocked cryptocurrency payments but may restrict some payments that may present high financial risks. They currently have an ongoing offer of £150 for switching too.
TSB
Business banking – prohibited
Personal banking – prohibited
TSB has recently announced plans to ban all 5 million bank customers from transferring payments to all crypto conversions, including Binance and Kraken. They said they have decided to ban cryptocurrencies due to excessively high fraud rates on trading platforms. TSB said that more than 800 of its customers lost money via Binance accounts.
Monzo
Business banking – prohibited
Personal banking – prohibited
Monzo has blocked customers’ deposits and withdrawals of cryptocurrencies from any exchange back in April 2021. They blocked payments to Binance platform, based on risk.
Lloyds bank
Business banking – prohibited
Personal banking – prohibited
Lloyds bank has kept away from crypto and does not allow customers to send or receive funds from any crypto exchange. They had a ban on virtual currency payments on his credit cards since 2018. This also extends to Halifax and the Bank of Scotland.
HSBC
Business banking – prohibited
Personal banking – prohibited
HSBC strictly prohibits customers from sending or receiving money from any crypto exchange. They have recently stopped allowing customers to use HSBC credit cards to fund their accounts. As the bank stated, “HSBC has no appetite for direct exposure to virtual currencies and limited appetite to facilitate products of securities that derive their value from virtual currencies”.
Santander
Business banking – prohibited
Personal banking – prohibited
Santander strictly prohibits customers from receiving or sending money from any crypto exchange. Santander stated: “Recently we have seen a large increase in UK customers becoming victims of cryptocurrency fraud. Keeping our customers safe is a top priority, so we have decided to prevent payments to Binance following the FCA’s warning to consumers”. Even so, it is stated that customers can still do cash withdrawals.
Metro Bank
Business banking – prohibited
Personal banking – prohibited
Much like Natwest, Metro Bank has put restrictions on any company that accepts cryptocurrencies. It will also close personal accounts with a high volume of transactions from and to crypto exchanges. They are doing so to have control to manage risks from a fraud and financial crime perspective.
Other banks banning cryptocurrencies
Besides the aforementioned, other banks blocking crypto include Starling bank, Nationwide, Virgin Money, and Tesco Bank. Starling bank cryptocurrency ban also has to do with financial frauds and scams, as well as the others.
Bottom line
In this article, we mentioned what UK are banning crypto. It is easy to see that the main reason is trying to protect their customers from financial frauds and scams.
Frequently Asked Questions And Their Answers
Is Coinbase banned in UK?
In June 2021, the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) warned that it would be banning Binance Markets Ltd from operating in the UK. Since then, banks claim that trading platforms such as Binance, Kraken, and Coinbase do not perform adequate security checks to prevent criminals from using them to launder money. More and more banks have banned Coinbase for their customers.
Is cryptocurrency being banned in the UK?
Even though Binance Markets Ltd was banned from operating in the UK, at the moment, cryptocurrency is still legal in the UK.
Does HSBC allow cryptocurrency?
According to their recent statement, HSBC doesn’t allow its customers to receive or send any money from a crypto exchange.
My name is Marija, and I'm a financial writer at DontDisappointMe. Although finance might not be everyone's cup of tea, my 10+ years of working in one of the biggest banks in my country, and my interest in extensive research on everything finance/investment-related, have made me somewhat of an expert in the field (if I do say so myself). No longer having the passion to work in a corporate setting, I decided that I couldn't let all of this knowledge go to waste so I started writing. And, here I am! Today I try to share my knowledge with my audience in the hopes of making this topic as simple and interesting as possible. In my leisure time, I like spending time with my family and travelling to new locations.