Britain’s financial crimes enforcement agency is set to launch a campaign costing £11 million (US$15.2 million) to warn young people about the risks of investing in cryptocurrencies. 

Fast facts

  • Financial Conduct Authority CEO Nikhil Rathi said social media users aged 18 to 30 would be the target audience. “As with the GameStop episode, more people see investment as entertainment behaving less rationally and more emotionally, egged on by anonymous and unaccountable social media influencers,” he said.
  • Last week, the UK’s advertising watchdog announced that it would clamp down on misleading marketing of crypto investments. The Advertising Standards Authority has already forced crypto companies Luno and Coinfloor to withdraw advertisements.
  • On Tuesday, police in London announced the seizure of a record US$408 million in cryptocurrency in a money-laundering investigation. In June, the FCA banned crypto exchange Binance from offering services in the UK.