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The United Kingdom’s Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) has officially lifted its four-year ban on retail trading of crypto Exchange Traded Notes (ETNs), marking a turning point in the nation’s digital asset regulation. The move paves the way for UK-based retail investors to access regulated crypto investment products for the first time since 2020.
Leading the charge is 21Shares, one of the world’s largest crypto product issuers, in partnership with UK wealth management platform Stratiphy. The collaboration allows retail clients to buy and hold crypto Exchange Traded Notes, such as physically backed Bitcoin and Ethereum ETNs, directly through Stratiphy’s app.
The partnership represents a significant milestone for both firms and for retail investors seeking exposure to digital assets within the protection of regulated investment channels.
Investor demand for digital assets continues to soar, Daniel Gold, Founder and CEO, Stratiphy, in a company statement. This partnership ensures we can offer regulated access to crypto as soon as FCA approval takes effect.
With the FCA’s approval, Stratiphy becomes the first UK wealth manager to list 21Shares’ crypto ETN products, enabling users to diversify their portfolios with crypto alongside equities, bonds, and ETFs.
Crypto Exchange Traded Notes function much like traditional ETNs, offering investors price exposure to underlying digital assets without requiring them to hold the cryptocurrencies directly. The products, issued by entities like 21Shares, are fully collateralized and traded on regulated exchanges, which makes them accessible through investment accounts such as ISAs and SIPPs.
This development is particularly significant in the UK, where 12% of adults already hold cryptocurrencies, often via unregulated exchanges or wallet providers, according to the Financial Conduct Authority’s annual crypto survey.
The lifting of the ban on Bitcoin and Ethereum-backed ETNs is a great first step, Russell Barlow, CEO, 21Shares, told CoinDesk.
It allows retail investors to gain exposure to the two largest cryptoassets in a simple, secure, and regulated manner.
Barlow added that crypto Exchange Traded Notes could soon qualify for inclusion in tax-advantaged accounts like ISAs and SIPPs, offering “a tax-efficient route for investors to access digital assets as part of diversified portfolios.”
Founded in Switzerland, 21Shares has emerged as a key player in Europe’s regulated crypto investment landscape. The company currently manages over $11 billion in assets across more than 50 exchange-traded crypto products listed in major markets including Switzerland, Germany, and France.
According to internal company data, over €26 billion worth of crypto Exchange Traded Products (ETPs) were traded across European exchanges in 2024 which is a 300% increase from the previous year. Analysts say that trend underscores growing institutional confidence in regulated crypto investment structures.
The firm’s expansion into the UK through its crypto Exchange Traded Notes offering, facilitated by Stratiphy’s app, signals a deeper alignment between traditional finance and blockchain-based assets. Stratiphy’s AI-powered investment tools further enable users to test, automate, and rebalance portfolios, helping retail traders manage risk and long-term exposure.
The FCA’s decision has been widely welcomed by industry leaders and policy analysts as a measured step toward digital asset mainstreaming. It marks a reversal of the regulator’s 2020 decision, which restricted retail participation in crypto derivatives and ETNs over volatility and risk concerns.
Since the announcement, market sentiment has improved among UK retail investors, who previously relied on offshore platforms or unregulated brokers to gain crypto exposure. Analysts suggest that regulated crypto Exchange Traded Notes could serve as a gateway product, bridging the gap between traditional finance and decentralized markets.
Allowing regulated access is not just about crypto adoption as it’s about investor protection and capital market modernization, Dr. Eleanor Brooks, Senior Policy Analyst, Oxford Blockchain Institute, told Reuters.
The crypto Exchange Traded Notes approval also positions the UK as a competitive player among European jurisdictions actively courting digital asset innovation, including Germany and Switzerland.
Experts believe the FCA’s move could open the door for broader crypto-linked financial products and eventually, spot crypto ETFs which is a development that has already reshaped markets in the U.S. and Asia.
As Stratiphy integrates 21Shares’ lineup into its AI-driven platform, retail investors in the UK can now explore crypto within regulated environments that emphasize security, transparency, and portfolio diversification.
The rollout of crypto Exchange Traded Notes also reflects a global shift toward compliance-based crypto adoption, aligning retail access with the same standards applied to institutional investment products.
This is the convergence of traditional wealth management and blockchain, Gold, Stratiphy. We’re building the bridge retail investors have been waiting for.
With growing institutional participation and evolving regulation, the FCA’s decision signals the start of a new chapter as one where crypto becomes a normalized component of everyday investing.
