The UK Financial Conduct Authority wants to talk about DeFi. On October 21, 2026, the regulator published Guidance Consultation GC26/7, asking for feedback on how firms that use or offer access to decentralised finance protocols should meet their existing obligations.
The timing is deliberate. The consultation landed roughly three weeks after the FCA opened its doors to applications under its new crypto regulatory regime.
What the FCA is actually asking
GC26/7 is non-Handbook guidance. It does not create a fresh rulebook for DeFi.
The guidance focuses on three areas. These are operational resilience, compliance, and financial crime controls.
Specifically, the FCA points firms toward SYSC 15A, which covers operational resilience, and SYSC 6, which deals with compliance functions. It also covers the Money Laundering Regulations, known as the MLRs.
GC26/7 runs alongside a second paper, CP26/36. That document clarifies new legislative exclusions from the regulated activities perimeter.
Both consultations close on November 18, 2026. The FCA plans to publish final guidance and recommendations in January 2027.
The decentralisation question
The FCA says it will take a case-by-case approach, and its rules apply where there is an identifiable controlling entity. That means genuinely decentralised activity may sit outside the FCA’s jurisdiction.
The regulator is aiming its attention at intermediaries: the firms that sit between users and protocols, rather than the code itself.
How this fits the bigger UK crypto timeline
The FCA opened its authorization gateway for cryptoasset firms on September 30, 2026. Applications are accepted until February 28, 2027.
The full cryptoasset regulatory regime is scheduled to go live on October 25, 2027.
Laid out in sequence, the calendar looks like this:
September 30, 2026: Authorization gateway opens for crypto firms.
October 21, 2026: GC26/7 and CP26/36 published for consultation.
November 18, 2026: Both consultations close.
January 2027: Final guidance expected.
February 28, 2027: Authorization application window closes.
October 25, 2027: Full crypto regime takes effect.
Firms applying for authorization will be doing so while the DeFi guidance is still being finalised, which leaves applicants working with draft expectations for part of the window.
What this means for firms and the market
For UK firms offering DeFi access, the immediate task is reading GC26/7 closely and deciding whether to respond. A four-week consultation window is not generous for an industry still debating what decentralisation even means.
SYSC 15A requirements are not trivial, and firms that have treated smart contract integrations as a product feature may now need to treat them as critical infrastructure with documented controls.
Applying the MLRs to DeFi access points could mean tighter onboarding and transaction monitoring for firms that sit between customers and protocols.
Industry responses submitted before November 18 will shape where that line lands. The January 2027 final guidance will show how much the FCA was willing to move.
Disclosure: This article was edited by John Chen. For more information on how we create and review content, see our Editorial Policy.