Summary
- A bipartisan group of MPs and peers in the UK has initiated a parliamentary inquiry regarding the banking challenges encountered by businesses in the crypto and digital asset sector.
- The Crypto and Digital Assets APPG aims to investigate the reasons behind the difficulties firms face in opening bank accounts, as well as the restrictions banks impose on crypto-related transactions, assessing whether these hinder the UK's goal of becoming a "global leader" in digital assets.
- This inquiry follows research indicating that UK banks have blocked or delayed approximately 40% of transactions aimed at crypto exchanges.
A bipartisan coalition of UK lawmakers has started a parliamentary investigation into the banking obstacles impacting the country's cryptocurrency sector, focusing on the challenges companies face in securing banking services and the limitations placed on crypto transactions by banks.
The Crypto and Digital Assets All-Party Parliamentary Group (APPG), co-chaired by Lord Vaizey of Didcot, a former minister for the digital economy, and Labour MP Gurinder Singh Josan, announced this inquiry shortly after the UK finalized its new regulatory framework for cryptocurrencies. The inquiry will assess whether existing banking barriers could thwart the Government's ambitions to establish the UK as a "global leader in digital assets."
Today, the Crypto & Digital Assets APPG has initiated a Parliamentary Inquiry into the availability of banking services for the UK's crypto and digital assets sector.
The APPG stands as Westminster's premier cross-party organization focused on crypto and digital assets, co-chaired by Lord Vaizey of Didcot… pic.twitter.com/uk3x7caV3Z
— Crypto & Digital Assets APPG (@cryptoappg) July 21, 2026
For several years, the APPG has noted that UK cryptocurrency companies have expressed difficulties in reliably obtaining and maintaining bank accounts. Major banks, including HSBC, Nationwide, NatWest, Santander, and Starling Bank, have imposed restrictions on crypto-related transactions. The inquiry will assess access to accounts and services, including insurance, alongside the transfer limits and payment blocks that banks have enacted. It will evaluate whether these actions are "proportionate" and how they impact consumers, competition, and innovation.
Josan and Vaizey stated in a joint statement, "Access to banking services is essential for any legitimate business, and unnecessary barriers can impede growth, investment, and innovation." They emphasized that it is "the right time" to review whether ongoing barriers could compromise the UK's aspirations of becoming a global leader in digital assets, especially with the new crypto regulatory regime set to take effect soon.
Debanking in the Crypto Space
A report released by the UK Cryptoasset Business Council in January revealed that banks were blocking or delaying about 40% of attempted transfers to crypto exchanges, with 70% of surveyed exchanges reporting that these restrictions were adversely affecting investment, expansion, or hiring in the UK. The APPG's own 2023 inquiry reached similar conclusions, warning that such friction could jeopardize the UK's ambitions to be a digital asset hub and calling for immediate action.
HM Treasury has acknowledged the issue, asserting that regulated entities should not be excluded merely for engaging in the crypto sector. In March, Economic Secretary Lucy Rigby informed Parliament that under the new framework, the Government "would not expect" FCA-licensed crypto firms to face "restrictions by banking services providers solely due to their sector."
The APPG plans to investigate international approaches, looking at how countries like the United States, Hong Kong, Australia, and the European Union have addressed crypto banking access, in search of insights that could inform UK policy. The issue of "debanking" has also been contentious in these regions. In the U.S., crypto businesses have accused a campaign referred to as Operation Chokepoint 2.0 of severing their banking connections, with Kraken recently winning $22 million from an auditor it claims abandoned it amid this situation. In Australia, Coinbase has alleged that banks are imposing an "unlawful" regulatory ban on crypto.
The APPG is currently accepting written evidence for six weeks, ending on August 31, and will publish a report with recommendations for the Government ahead of the mandatory implementation of the UK's new crypto regime in October 2027.