Licensing momentum through regulatory clarity

On the 28th of May, the UK’s Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), published on their website “CP25/15: A prudential regime for cryptoasset firms”, or Cryptopru. The FCA’s Consultation Paper outlines the proposed prudential rules and guidance for the issuance of qualifying stablecoins and the safeguarding of qualifying cryptoassets. The regulator’s signalling reflects a clear commitment to defining the direction of the UK crypto market. For fintechs, this also indicates that the FCA is actively laying the groundwork for a regulated digital asset ecosystem.

The relevance of these regulatory changes

Greater clarity in financial services regulation helps create momentum for businesses in the sector. We can observe this with the UK’s MiFIDPRU framework, as it set a clearer set of rules for investment firms to follow and stay compliant with their requirements. Similarly, article 67 of the EU’s MiCA (Markets in Crypto Assets Regulation) established the prudential requirements for crypto-asset service providers (CASPs), ensuring the protection of clients and overall financial stability.

In other words, consultation papers such as these indicate that the FCA is beginning to create the rules of the game for new and established players to enter the market, thus enhancing investor confidence and enabling cross-border expansion.

A comparison of the rules

As the FCA moves forward with Cryptopru, it's worth reviewing how this proposed regime compares with its counterparts—MiFIDPRU in the UK and MiCA in the EU. While each regime is designed for different business models, they all establish baseline prudential standards for capital, liquidity, risk controls, and reporting.

Cryptopru’s innovation and impact on the UK market

The FCA’s proposed Cryptopru regime marks a major step forward in how the UK regulates crypto finance. Rather than retro-fitting old banking rules, Cryptopru is a tailored prudential framework, designed specifically for stablecoin issuers and custodians operating in digital asset markets.

As previously discussed, these efforts made by regulators on innovative topics seek to open the market to new businesses, mirroring the same intention behind MiFIDPRU for investment firms and MiCA in the EU. For fintechs, this means a window is opening in the UK market.  When regimes like this emerge, they create the conditions for licensing momentum, making it possible for early movers to enter the market with confidence and seize new opportunities.

How FintechXpndr can help

At Braithwate, we’ve helped numerous fintechs through their licensing journeys and navigate different regulatory regimes.

Using this first-hand experience, in collaboration with HM (a boutique management consulting firm in Singapore) we developed FintechXpndr (FXp), a tailored and automated solution to help fintechs through multi-jurisdictional licensing, align operations with emerging prudential expectations, and turn regulatory clarity into commercial opportunity.

Let FXp help you seize the window of opportunity and unlock momentum for your fintech business.