As part of measures to protect consumers from fraudulent activities, Santander will restrict UK customers from transferring real-time payments to cryptocurrency exchanges beginning in 2023, Reuters reported, citing the bank’s Friday email statement.
Faster Payments Service is frequently utilized by banks and clients in the United Kingdom. It is unknown whether Santander would give alternative methods for consumers to send payments to cryptocurrency exchanges, although the company’s latest disclosure does not indicate such plans.
The bank claims that restricting exchange transactions is necessary to safeguard its customers from crypto-related fraud. Santander stated that it will implement these safety nets in stages starting November 15 through the beginning of 2023.
Santander Shoots Down Crypto Transactions
Faster Payments is the technology that enables instantaneous bank transactions for the majority of UK bank accounts. Pay UK, the owner of Faster Payments, disclosed it was collaborating with regulators and the payments sector to design and carry out “improved protection” measures in order to avert scams.
At an undisclosed point in 2023, the UK bank will prohibit all real-time payments made via telephone banking, in-branch payments, online banking, and mobile banking to cryptocurrency exchanges, Reuters added.
Payments to cryptocurrency exchanges will be limited to a maximum of 1,000 GBP per transaction and a total of 3,000 GBP each rolling 30-day period.
The new regulations will not affect customers’ ability to withdraw funds.
A Santander spokesman said:
“Keeping our customers safe from cryptocurrency scams is a top priority. We intend to further protect customers by blocking all Faster Payments we identify to cryptocurrency exchanges from Santander accounts – this will be implemented during the course of 2023.”
Going Hard Against Nefarious Activities
Santander’s action is in accordance with the UK Financial Conduct Authority’s (FCA) strong stance against the exchange, which was banned from functioning in the UK last year.
The FCA asserted that the company “cannot be adequately supervised” and that its “complex and high-risk financial products” constitute a considerable risk to consumers.
Binance did not respond to a request for comment immediately.
The Natwest Group in the United Kingdom imposed a limit on the daily amount clients can send to bitcoin exchanges in 2021.
Meanwhile, according to data from the pricing comparison website Finder, nearly half of the UK’s largest banks do not support cryptocurrency.