UK lawmakers have opened a new parliamentary inquiry into the persistent banking problems facing crypto companies, probing why firms struggle to open and maintain bank accounts and why some banks limit crypto-related payments. The move comes weeks after the UK finalized its updated crypto regulatory framework and aims to determine whether banking practices are hindering the country’s goal of becoming a global hub for digital assets.
Why the inquiry was launched
The Crypto and Digital Assets All-Party Parliamentary Group (APPG), co-chaired by Lord Vaizey of Didcot and Labour MP Gurinder Singh Josan, announced the inquiry on July 21, 2026. The APPG said the review is timely, arriving shortly after the government completed its new regime for crypto regulation, and will test if remaining barriers to banking access could undercut the UK’s ambitions in the sector.
For several years, UK crypto firms have reported difficulties opening and keeping business accounts. Banks including HSBC, Nationwide, NatWest, Santander and Starling Bank have been cited for restricting transfers to crypto platforms and imposing payment blocks. The APPG will examine those practices to assess whether they are proportionate and what impact they have on consumers, competition and innovation.
What the inquiry will examine
The APPG said it will investigate a range of banking-related issues facing the digital asset industry. Areas under scrutiny include access to bank accounts and services such as insurance, the prevalence and rationale for transfer limits, and the reasons for payment blocks and account closures. The group will consider whether measures imposed by banks are justified by financial crime and compliance concerns or whether they amount to de facto exclusion of legitimate businesses.
MPs and peers will invite written evidence for six weeks, with submissions open until August 31. Following that evidence-gathering period, the APPG plans to publish a report containing recommendations to the government. The report is expected well before October 2027, when the UK’s new crypto regime becomes mandatory.
Josan and Vaizey emphasized the practical stakes. “Access to banking services is fundamental for any legitimate business,” they said in a joint statement, warning that unnecessary barriers can stunt growth, investment and innovation.
Data and prior findings
The inquiry follows research by the UK Cryptoasset Business Council published in January, which found that banks blocked or delayed roughly 40% of attempted transfers to crypto exchanges. That survey also reported that 70% of exchanges felt such restrictions were harming investment, expansion or hiring within the UK. The APPG’s own 2023 review reached similar conclusions and urged action to prevent friction from undermining Britain’s digital asset hub ambitions.
HM Treasury has acknowledged the problem. In March, Economic Secretary Lucy Rigby told Parliament that, under the new regulatory framework, the government “would not expect” FCA-licensed crypto firms to be “subject to restrictions by banking services providers simply because of the sector they belong to.” The APPG said its inquiry will test how that position is working in practice.
International comparisons and wider context
The APPG intends to look beyond the UK for lessons on how other jurisdictions have handled crypto banking access. The review will examine approaches in the United States, Hong Kong, Australia and the European Union, where debates over “debanking”—the cutting off of financial services to crypto firms—have been prominent.
In the U.S., some crypto companies have blamed a campaign they call Operation Chokepoint 2.0 for the loss of banking relationships. The episode has produced litigation and awards: Kraken’s parent company Payward recently won a $22 million arbitration award against its former auditor, Mazars USA, after the auditor abandoned an almost complete audit during that period, according to reporting cited by the APPG.
In Australia, Coinbase has publicly accused banks of effectively imposing an “unlawful” regulatory ban on crypto, illustrating that tensions between financial institutions and crypto firms are not unique to the UK.
What happens next
The APPG’s call for evidence will run until August 31. Submissions from industry participants, consumer groups, banks, regulators and others will inform the inquiry’s findings. Once compiled, the APPG will publish a report with recommendations aimed at ensuring workable access to banking for regulated crypto firms and at removing undue barriers while preserving safeguards against financial crime.
With the UK’s new crypto rules due to become mandatory in October 2027, the APPG said it wants timely recommendations that can feed into implementation and supervision. The inquiry represents a formal parliamentary effort to bridge concerns from the industry and the expectations set by government and regulators about the treatment of licensed crypto businesses in the banking system.
As the APPG progresses, stakeholders across the fintech, banking and crypto sectors will be watching for outcomes that could shape the operational landscape for digital-asset businesses in the UK.
Source: Decrypt