LAGOS, Nigeria (VOICE OF NAIJA)-The Financial Conduct Authority of Britain announced that it has shut down 26 machines around the nation for offering cryptocurrencies without authorization and cautioned customers that they risk losing all of their money.
In an attempt to purchase cryptocurrencies, a member of the public put $1,000 into a Sheffield, northern England, cryptocurrency ATM. However, neither the money nor the coin were ever refunded, according to the FCA.
Since the beginning of the year, the watchdog has “disrupted” 26 ATMs while conducting a coordinated operation with other law enforcement authorities at 34 places where crypto ATMs are allegedly located.
“If you use a crypto ATM in the UK, you are using a machine that is operating illegally and you may be handing your money over to criminals,” Steve Smart, joint executive director of enforcement and market oversight at the FCA, said in a statement.
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“You will not be protected if something goes wrong, and you could lose your money,” Smart said.
According to stricter marketing regulations revealed by the banking authority in June, British consumers purchasing crypto assets would enjoy a 24-hour “cooling-off” period starting in October.
Since the collapse of FTX last year, which left millions of investors nursing losses totaling billions of dollars, including those in Britain, regulators are paying closer attention to crypto assets, such as Bitcoin, which currently have no direct supervision worldwide.
The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) announced that “refer a friend” bonuses for cryptocurrency buyers would also be eliminated, and anyone advertising such assets would have to implement explicit risk warnings and guarantee that advertisements were transparent, accurate, and not deceptive.