A successful regulatory turnaround for a UK EMI and crypto firm, restoring FCA permissions and avoiding administration under new leadership.
Payment Services & Card/ Merchant Acquirers
A UK-based financial services firm authorised by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) as an Electronic Money Institution (EMI) and registered as a cryptoasset firm. The client operates in both traditional and digital finance sectors.
Under previous management, the client lost its FCA permissions and faced significant operational and reputational risks. With the business nearing administration, core investors required urgent intervention to stabilise the company, protect its regulatory standing, and restore its ability to operate lawfully in the UK market.
Our specialist consultant was appointed by the client’s core investors to lead a regulatory turnaround. This involved immediate stakeholder engagement, regulatory remediation, and the preparation and submission of detailed documentation to the FCA. We managed the full reinstatement process, liaising directly with the regulator, and ensuring the firm addressed all compliance shortcomings.
• FCA permissions successfully reinstated for both EMI and cryptoasset activities
• Regulatory confidence restored, enabling the client to continue operations
• Avoided administration and positioned the firm for renewed growth under strengthened governance and investor oversight
A crypto asset custodian based in the U.K. with global reach approached Lysis with the request to assist them with the process to obtain registration from the FCA which would enable them to operate in the UK market as a crypto asset business. Due to the holding company’s strong global footprint, part of the FCA requirements for registration included the need for a UK based money laundering reporting officer (MLRO).
Our client was setting up a new gaming licensing and taxation authority for a national government and sought external support to develop its Compliance and AML Framework.
A major estate agency had a need to establish a Know Your Customer (KYC) function which was able to scale and undertake a remediation exercise to meet new regulatory requirements (i. e. , 4MLD) and to build out a business as usual (BAU) function to service ongoing requirements.
