Santander UK Limits Cryptocurrency Exchange Transactions, Bank Says Investing in Crypto ‘Can Be High Risk’

On Nov. 3, Santander UK, the subsidiary of the Spanish financial giant Banco Santander, S.A., published a notice that says “investing in cryptocurrency assets can be high risk.” Furthermore, the British bank also imposed a limit on cryptocurrency exchanges using the firm’s mobile and online banking services.

Santander UK Limits Crypto Exchange Transfers to ‘Protect’ Customers

Santander UK has published a new update concerning cryptocurrencies and it warns that investing in such financial vehicles can be “high risk.” The bank notes that the U.K.’s Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) has warned the public about such risks and the financial institution wants to do everything it can to “protect” customers. “[Santander UK feels] that limiting payments to cryptocurrency exchanges is the best way to make sure your money stays safe,” the bank explains.

The financial institution has placed a £1,000 ($1,120) limit per transaction, and a total limit of £3,000 ($3,360) in “any rolling 30-day period.” Despite the bank’s warning, Santander-associated businesses are dedicating lots of effort toward tokenization, commodity tokens, and cryptocurrency services in Brazil. The Spanish banking giant has also crafted a bitcoin (BTC) exchange-traded fund (ETF) in Spain.

Santander UK, however, must operate under the United Kingdom’s financial laws and other Santander-associated businesses navigate differently. The notice posted to the bank’s web portal says that customers can still get payments from crypto exchanges into their accounts, but it notes more changes could come in the future.

“We’ll be making more changes to limit or prevent payments to crypto exchanges in the future, though we’ll always let you know before we make these changes,” Santander UK’s update discloses.

The bank also highlights the largest crypto exchange by global trade volume, Binance, in the update. Santander UK has special restrictions when it comes to dealing with Binance. “We’ll continue to stop payments being sent to Binance,” Santander UK says. The bank also shares an FCA warning written about Binance.

“You can still withdraw any money you have with Binance into your Santander account,” the update from Santander UK concludes.

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