A Coinbase-backed advocacy group, Stand With Crypto UK, is urging its 286,000 members to file formal complaints with their banks. The aim: to challenge widespread payment blocks and delays targeting crypto exchanges across the country. This campaign asserts that UK banks are unfairly restricting access to legal crypto activities.
Mass complaints target UK banks
Although holding crypto assets is legal in the UK, banks claim they apply restrictions to transfers involving digital currencies because of fraud and financial crime risks. Critics argue, however, that these policies are blanket measures, impacting all customers rather than assessing individual risk profiles—and thus amount to a de facto mass blockade.
The UK Cryptoasset Business Council reports that banks currently block or delay about 40 percent of all domestic crypto transactions. In parallel, the percentage of British adults holding crypto assets has doubled in four years, now reaching 8 percent.
According to the UK government, licensed crypto companies should not face account or transaction restrictions simply because of the sector in which they operate.
Driven by these concerns, Stand With Crypto UK has launched the “Your Money. Your Choice” initiative, motivating users to demand official bank responses. The group claims most major banks even restrict transfers to platforms authorized by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA).
Mini glossary: The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) is the regulatory body overseeing UK financial markets. Crypto companies are subject to registration or authorization processes to comply with anti-money laundering rules imposed by the FCA.
Reports expose evolving bank practices
Under the Payment Services Regulations 2017, banks are required to process transfers that meet account conditions. Yet, the “Locked Out” report published in January 2026 revealed that 8 in 10 crypto platforms saw an increase in rejected bank transfers over the preceding 12 months. One exchange reported that in a single year, UK banks blocked customer transactions totalling up to £1 million.
Sources supporting the campaign note that Chase UK, Starling, TSB, Virgin Money, and Metro Bank have completely halted both wire and card payments to crypto exchanges. Meanwhile, Barclays, HSBC, Nationwide, and Monzo still allow transfers but impose strict limits on transaction amounts.
Parallels to the US debate draw scrutiny
The tension in the UK mirrors the controversy over Operation Choke Point 2.0 in the US, though there are key differences. In America, during President Joe Biden’s term, digital asset advocates accused federal banking regulators of covertly coercing banks to avoid crypto firms.
During a February 2025 hearing of the US House Financial Services Committee, subcommittee chair Dan Meuser asserted that the FDIC hindered service to digital asset companies, their employees, and clients by threatening banks with formal regulatory action. In contrast, it is alleged that in the UK, such pressure is being applied directly by the banks, not by the regulators.
Katie Harries, Coinbase’s European head of policy, claims that UK banks’ restrictive stance undercuts the government’s vision of making the country a global hub for digital assets. Harries insists this vision cannot progress without retail investor participation, and that banks are effectively constraining one of the main channels for converting fiat into crypto.
Advocacy groups also point out that some banks have established their own internal digital asset teams. As a result, questions linger as to whether these restrictions are genuinely about security concerns, or whether they represent anti-competitive strategies meant to stifle rival services.
