Cboe UK will start accepting applications for crypto Exchange Traded Notes (ETNs) following the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) approving professional investor access earlier this week.
The exchange will become the second in UK to accept bitcoin and ethereum ETNs, joining the London Stock Exchange (LSE) after the FCA gave the greenlight on 11 March.
The FCA’s approvals come with several guidelines. Crypto ETNs in the UK must be physically backed, non-leveraged, and limited to bitcoin or ethereum for listing on Cboe.
The UK markets watchdog will still ban retail investors from accessing the products, noting that they are “ill-suited” to these consumers in a statement.
Commenting on the FCA’s approval, a spokesperson from Cboe said: “The FCA’s announcement is an encouraging development for the UK’s capital markets and will help professional investors gain access to cryptocurrencies in a highly-regulated, transparent and structured environment.
“We are putting in place the framework to list crypto asset-backed ETNs on our regulated market in the UK, to complement our existing offering in the Netherlands, and encourage issuers to come and talk to us today about their plans and their timeframe for listing in London”.
“Exchanges will need to continue to make sure sufficient controls are in place, so trading is orderly and proper protection is afforded to professional investors,” the FCA said in a statement.
“The FCA continues to remind people that crypto assets are high risk and largely unregulated. Those who invest should be prepared to lose all their money,” the UK watchdog added.
