An official at the UK's top financial regulator has issued new comments calling for consumer caution on bitcoin and cryptocurrency investing. <\/p>\n
As reported by Financial News, Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) director of strategy and competition Chris Woolard addressed the subject at a blockchain event held by the regulator last week. While affirmingthe regulator's enthusiasm for blockchain at the time, Woolard voiced concern about the recent meteoric growth observed in the cryptocurrency markets. <\/p>\n
In particular, he arguedmore perhaps should be done to alert consumers that cryptocurrencies are not regulated financial instruments and, as such, they don't have the consumer protections associated with more mature assets. <\/p>\n
According to the news source, Woolard said: <\/p>\n
\"I am not saying that we view digital currencies as an inherently bad thing but we do have to exercise a degree of caution.\" <\/p>\n
Woolard went on to pledge that the FCA would continue to ring the alarm over potential suspicious actors in the industry a role it has long played. Among others, the FCA has previously issued warnings against a suspicious crypto trading website and a digital currency scheme called OneCoin that has drawn the ire of several global regulators. <\/p>\n
Still, the FCA has proved to be among the more progressive regulators on the issue as well, granting US startup Circle Internet Financial, at the time a bitcoin brokerage, an e-money license in 2016. <\/p>\n
As recently as last week, the agency further revealed it has increased its commitment to industry startups through a 'sandbox' initiative by helping to incubate nine new blockchain and distributed ledger startups. <\/p>\n
Disclosure: CoinDesk is a subsidiary of Digital Currency Group, which has an ownership in Circle. <\/p>\n
Chris Woolard image via Innovate Finance\/YouTube <\/p>\n
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