Regulation needed as City watchdog reveals 7m British adults now own cryptocurrencies

The number of crypto investors in the UK has increased from 9%  of adults in 2021 to around 12% of the population

Around 7m British adults own cryptocurrencies such as bitcoin, the City watchdog revealed as it set out plans to regulate the industry.

The number of crypto investors in the UK has increased from nearly 5m or 9 per cent of adults in 2021 to around 12 per cent of the population. 

The average investor now owns £1,842 of cryptocurrency compared to £1,595 three years ago.

This is according to the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), which is setting out a timetable to regulate the volatile asset class as investors are unprotected if something goes wrong. 

Research has shown a third of investors mistakenly think their crypto investments are protected by the regulator and they would be able to seek financial redress.

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