Kourosh Khanloo, director of corporate strategy at Jefferies-owned Tradu, has shared his perspective with CI on the UK lifting the ban on crypto ETNs for retail investors on October 8, 2025.
Kourosh says that he welcomes the UK Financial Conduct Authority’s (FCA) decision to lift the ban and emphasizes the importance of making digital assets more accessible for retail investors. This is actually a key trend that has really picked up in more progressive jurisdictions such as the US now under the Trump Administration.
He also states that this may help re-establish the United Kingdom as a digital finance hub, and drive investment opportunities as well as related tech breakthroughs. However, a lot more needs to be done to help the UK catch up with other jurisdictions where crypto adoption rates are much higher like Latin America.
Kourosh also notes that digital assets exchanges should work cooperatively with regulatory authorities to ensure the safety of retail investors. But this alone is not enough to drive meaningful adoption. There also has to be a pressing need for consumers to use cryptocurrencies so they can escape the negative effects of high rates of inflation like those seen now in Turkey.
Kourosh added that the UK’s decision to lift the ban on retail access to crypto exchange-traded notes is “a significant and welcome step forward for the digital asset industry.”
He acknowledged that it shows that regulators are recognising “the need to balance innovation with investor protection, and it opens the door for retail investors to gain crypto exposure within a regulated, transparent framework, without having to hold the underlying assets directly.”
Kourosh further noted that this move could help “re-establish the UK as a leading centre for digital finance, attracting investment and innovation that might otherwise flow overseas.”
They added that it is also an important “proving ground for future regulatory developments, potentially paving the way for other crypto assets in the longer term.”
He concluded:
“As always, robust oversight and clear disclosures will be essential, and it’s important that exchanges remain committed to working closely with the FCA to ensure retail investors can continue to participate in this market with confidence.”
As the FCA noted last month, firms will soon be able to give retail consumers access to crypto exchange traded notes (cETNs), under changes announced by the UK regulator.
The FCA emphasized crypto ETNs that retail consumers may access must be traded on an FCA-approved, UK-based investment exchange (a Recognised Investment Exchange or RIE). Financial promotion rules will “apply so consumers get the right information and aren’t offered inappropriate incentives to invest.”
David Geale, executive director of payments and digital finance at the FCA, said last month:
“Since we restricted retail access to cETNs, the market has evolved, and products have become more mainstream and better understood. In light of this, we’re providing consumers with more choice, while ensuring there are protections in place. This should mean people get the information they need to assess whether the level of risk is right for them.”
The Consumer Duty will apply to companies that are offering these products to retail investors.
But, as expected, there won’t be any coverage from the Financial Services Compensation Scheme (FSCS).
This is the latest development as the FCA continues to “establish a regulatory framework for crypto.”
The FCA’s ban on retail access to crypto-assets derivatives will remain in place.
In January 2021, the FCA banned “the sale, marketing and distribution of derivatives and ETNs that reference unregulated transferable cryptoassets to retail clients.”
In March 2024, the FCA announced they would “not object to requests from recognised investment exchanges (such as Cboe or the London Stock Exchange) to create a UK listed market segment for cryptoasset-backed exchange traded notes (cETNs) for professional investors.”
In June 2025, the FCA launched a consultation “on proposals to lift the ban on retail access to cETNs.”
The FCA grants recognition orders “to investment exchanges in the UK to make sure they meet regulatory standards.”
This power is provided under the Financial Services and Markets Act 2000 for the FCA to “consider applications from UK entities (a body corporate or an unincorporated association) for recognition as a UK recognised body.”