Are crypto ATMs legal in the UK? Running one is not, unless the operator is registered with the FCA under the Money Laundering Regulations, and the FCA said in 2022 that none of its registered firms had been approved to offer crypto ATM services. The regulator tells consumers not to use them.
This is an evergreen explainer, read from the FCA’s own pages on 8 October 2026.
Why are crypto ATMs not legal in the UK?
Because running one needs FCA registration, and the FCA said in 2022 that none of its registered firms had been approved for it. The FCA’s cryptoasset AML/CTF regime page (last updated 12 February 2026) lists crypto ATMs under “cryptoasset exchange provider”, which covers operating a machine that automatically exchanges cryptoassets for money or money for cryptoassets. Such businesses must register with the FCA before starting, and the FCA has supervised them since 10 January 2020. Registration is anti-money-laundering supervision, not authorisation.
In its March 2022 warning, the FCA told operators to shut down or face enforcement, because none of its registered firms had been approved to offer crypto ATM services. In September 2024 it said: “There are no legal crypto ATM operators in the UK.” That is the regulator’s dated statement, repeated in July 2025 per FStech; the FCA register blocks automated reads, so the desk did not check it.
How has the FCA enforced the rules on crypto ATMs?
| Date | What happened | Source |
|---|---|---|
| 11 Mar 2022 | FCA warns operators to shut down or face enforcement | FCA warning |
| 30 Dec 2021 to 12 Mar 2022 | Olumide Osunkoya runs ATMs at 28 locations via GidiPlus Ltd after being refused registration | FCA, Feb 2025 |
| 2023 | FCA inspections: 34 locations, 26 machines disrupted (Sept 2024 release); 38 and 30 (Feb 2025 release) | FCA |
| 2022 to 2024 | UK machines on CoinATMRadar fall from more than 80 to nil | FCA, Feb 2025 |
| 10 Sep 2024 | FCA charges Osunkoya over £2.6m of transactions | FCA, Sept 2024 |
| 30 Sep 2024 | Osunkoya pleads guilty to five charges | FCA, Feb 2025 |
| 28 Feb 2025 | Four-year sentence, the first UK sentence for unregistered cryptoasset activity per the FCA | FCA, Feb 2025 |
| Jul 2025 | Seven machines seized, two arrests, four south-west London premises searched | FStech, 17 Jul 2025 |
The two 2023 figures come from the charging and sentencing releases and disagree, so we print both.
Will crypto ATMs be legal in the UK after 2027?
Nothing read says so. The FCA’s page says draft legislation, if it becomes law, would create a regime expected from 25 October 2027 under which firms need FSMA authorisation (see our FCA crypto gateway guide), and no FCA page read says an ATM operator will be authorised under it. For routes UK buyers do use, see buying crypto with a credit card.
Questions readers ask
Is it illegal to use a crypto ATM in the UK?
None of the four FCA pages this desk read says using a crypto ATM is itself an offence, so we claim neither that it is nor that it is legal. The FCA says consumers should not be using them, and its enforcement director said in 2024 that users are “handing your money directly to criminals”.
What happened to all those Bitcoin ATMs?
Per the FCA, many were disrupted or seized. The FCA warned operators in March 2022 to shut down or face enforcement, then inspected sites with the police. Per the FCA, UK crypto ATMs advertised on CoinATMRadar fell from more than 80 in 2022 to nil in 2024, and one operator went to prison.
Why were Bitcoin cash machines ordered to shut down in the UK?
A crypto ATM swaps cash for cryptoassets, which makes its operator a cryptoasset exchange provider under the Money Laundering Regulations. That needs FCA registration first, and in March 2022 the FCA said none of its registered firms had been approved to offer crypto ATM services, so any machine running was running illegally.
The FCA’s standing warning applies to any route in: if you buy crypto, be prepared to lose all your money. Crypto assets are high risk and largely unprotected by FSCS, and nothing here is financial advice.