UK’s NatWest bank limits transactions to crypto exchanges

NatWest and other U.K. high street banks have ramped crypto curbs amid recent regulatory pressure on the sector.

As the crypto crackdown continues in Britain, another high street bank has intensified its efforts to curtail  its customers’ use of digital assets. 

The Natwest Group has reportedly capped the daily amount its customers can send to cryptocurrency exchanges due to concerns over investment scams and fraud, according to a June 29 report from Reuters. However, it was not revealed what those new limits were in terms of fiat currency transfers.

The temporary cap was imposed on June 24. The restriction targets several cryptocurrency exchanges, including Binance.  The high street bank claims to serve 19 million customers in the U.K.

The spokesperson for NatWest stated that it has recently seen a high level of cryptocurrency investment scams targeting its customers, particularly through social media sites, addi:

“To protect our customers from the criminals exploiting these platforms, we’re temporarily reducing the maximum daily amount that a customer can send to cryptocurrency exchanges as well as blocking payments to a small number of cryptocurrency asset firms where we have seen particularly significant levels of fraud-related harm for our customers.”

The restrictions imposed by NatWest come at a time when the U.K. financial watchdog, the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), is tightening its grip on unregulated cryptocurrency trading platforms.

Related: UK regulator warns against 111 unregistered crypto companies… and FOMO

In April, the bank stated it will refuse to serve business customers who accept payment in cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin, which the UK lender had categorized as “high risk.”

On June 20 United Kingdom-based financial institution TSB Banking Group announced that it will be barring its 5.4 million customers from buying crypto assets.

The restrictions do not end with high street banks. On Monday, June 28, Binance suspended the popular local payments provider, Faster Payments, for its U.K. customers, further limiting the options for moving GBP to and from the exchange.