UK Parliament Investigates Banking Chokepoints for Crypto Firms

The UK Parliament has launched a cross-party inquiry to examine how banks have choked off cryptocurrency businesses by refusing them bank accounts and imposing restrictions on crypto-related payments. The Crypto and Digital Assets All-Party Parliamentary Group (APPG), led by Ed Vaizey and Gurinder Singh Josan, will investigate the challenges crypto firms face in accessing banking services and the impact of banks' restrictions on crypto transactions. The inquiry will assess whether these restrictions are proportionate and their effects on consumers, businesses, innovation, and competition. The APPG is collecting written evidence from the banking, payments, fintech, and crypto sectors over a six-week period. CEX trading volumes rose for the first time in five months in June, with spot climbing 15.3% to $1.11T and RWA perpetual volumes surging to a record $311B.