26-3-2025 – The head of Britain’s Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), Nikhil Rathi, has sounded the alarm over a striking trend among the nation’s youth: millions of adults under 35 are diving into the world of cryptocurrency as their gateway to investing. Speaking to MPs on Tuesday, Rathi painted a vivid picture of a generation shunning traditional avenues like stocks or bonds in favour of volatile digital coins such as Bitcoin—a choice he warned carries “a very high risk” of losing everything. With the FCA unveiling its ambitious five-year blueprint on the same day, the regulator is now on a mission to steer these novice investors towards what it terms “mainstream investments,” eyeing a 2030 milestone to measure progress among those with over £10,000 to spare.
Britain’s financial landscape, Rathi explained, stands in stark contrast to nations like the United States, where 38% of people own shares directly, or Sweden, where the figure tops 20%. In the UK, share ownership lags significantly, particularly among the young, who appear captivated by the allure of alternative assets. This shift, he suggested, reflects a uniquely British cocktail of attitudes towards risk and reward, shaped by taxation, education, regulation, and a broader cultural fabric distinct from global peers. Yet, he was quick to note that the FCA can’t shoulder this challenge alone—it’s a societal knot to untangle.
The stakes are high, with the FCA estimating that 12% of UK adults—around 7 million people—hold crypto assets, a YouGov survey spotlighting men under 35 as the most likely to borrow cash to fuel their digital ventures. At present, the UK’s crypto scene operates in a regulatory Wild West, with firms merely required to register with the FCA to prove they’re tackling money laundering. Change, however, is on the horizon: the government is gearing up to roll out a tailored legal framework to bring crypto businesses into the fold, a move that could reshape the market’s freewheeling nature.
Meanwhile, the FCA’s new strategy isn’t just about nudging young investors—it’s a broader pledge to “deepen trust, rebalance risk, support growth, and improve lives.” Embracing cutting-edge tools like artificial intelligence, the regulator aims to sharpen its efficiency and clamp down harder on financial crime, targeting those who exploit their regulated status for ill intent. Industry voices have offered cautious applause, though past critiques of the FCA stifling innovation still linger. Adding to the overhaul, the authority revealed plans to slash over 100 pages from its sprawling 10,000-page rulebook, trimming red tape around consumer finance, investments, and mortgages. This aligns with Chancellor Rachel Reeves’ bold vow to cut business regulatory costs by a quarter, though James Daley of Fairer Finance warned that such moves could backfire, hinting at political pressure nudging the FCA into risky territory.
For Rathi, the crypto craze among Britain’s youth isn’t just a statistic—it’s a symptom of deeper currents. “Several million” under-35s are making digital currency their first financial fling, a trend he finds troubling against the backdrop of the UK’s anaemic share-owning culture. As the FCA charts its course, the challenge is clear: coax a generation raised on risk into safer waters, all while keeping the financial system nimble and the public shielded.
