The United Kingdom’s financial regulator, the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), proposed allowing certain retail investment funds to hold up to 10% of their assets in cryptocurrency exchange-traded notes (ETNs).
The financial regulator suggested that UCITS (“Undertakings for Collective Investment in Transferable Securities”) schemes and some non-UCITS retail schemes (NURS) invest in crypto ETNs in its latest quarterly consultation document.
UCITS and NURS are similar to mutual funds in the US in that they are open, regulated structures that pool money from retail investors into managed portfolios.
“Our proposed 10% limit for UCITS and NURS would also mitigate the risk of significant impacts arising from exposure to cryptocurrency ETNs,” the FCA wrote.
The FCA proposal marks another step on the path towards greater acceptance of cryptocurrency exchange-traded products (ETPs) in the UK under the ETN brand. The regulator first allowed retail investors to access such funds in October 2025, lifting a ban that had been in place since 2021.
Investment vehicles that allow users to gain exposure to cryptocurrencies without having to purchase and custody the assets themselves have been at the forefront of widespread cryptocurrency adoption for several years. Regulatory hurdles to its wider use in the UK have drawn criticism from commentators who say it risks putting the country at a disadvantage compared to its peers.
