The UK Market Abuse Regime for Cryptoassets (“MARC”) – the FCA’s final rules

Financial Services Regulation | 12/08/2026

In this article, we describe the FCA’s final rules in relation to the forthcoming UK Market Abuse Regime for Cryptoassets (“MARC”).

The FCA has recently published final rules establishing their market abuse regime for cryptoassets. Although drawing on the UK Market Abuse Regulation (“UK MAR”) in developing the MARC framework, they have adapted their approach to reflect the unique features of cryptoasset markets and the scope of their rule-making powers under the Financial Services and Markets Act 2000 (Cryptoassets) Regulations 2026 (the “Cryptoassets Regulations”). The new regime will not come into force until 2027.

Market abuse in cryptoasset markets can consist of insider dealing, the unlawful disclosure of inside information, or market manipulation.

The MARC regime applies where a qualifying cryptoasset has been admitted to trading, or is subject to an application seeking admission to trading, on a UK qualifying cryptoasset trading platform ( a "UK QCATP").

Where that is the case, the prohibitions on insider dealing, unlawful disclosure of inside information, and market manipulation apply regardless of where the relevant behaviour takes place, whether in the UK or overseas.

MARC is a civil regime only and under the Cryptoassets Regulations, the relevant designated activities for the purposes of MARC are the use and disclosure of inside information, and market manipulation. The Cryptoassets Regulations do not require the person engaging in the behaviour in question to have intended to commit cryptoasset market abuse. However, FCA guidance indicates that where persons have taken all reasonable measures to prevent cryptoasset market abuse from occurring but nevertheless persons within their employment commit cryptoasset market abuse on their behalf, this should not be deemed to constitute cryptoasset market abuse by the persons taking all reasonable measures to prevent cryptoasset market abuse from occurring.

The MARC rules themselves include requirements in relation to:

the public disclosure of inside information;
legitimate market practices;
market abuse systems and controls for UK QCATPs and intermediaries;
information sharing among UK QCATPs (subject to a size threshold) to aid in the prevention, detection and disruption of cross-platform market abuse; and
creating and maintaining insider lists.

Inside Information and Delayed Disclosure Requirements

Regulation 26 of the Cryptoassets Regulations provides that relevant persons must, where required by the FCA’s rules, publicly disclose inside information that directly concerns them.

The Cryptoassets Regulations also require that this information is published “as soon as possible”’. However, the FCA has the power to specify in rules circumstances where delayed disclosure would be allowed. The FCA rules allow delayed disclosure where immediate disclosure would be likely to prejudice the relevant person’s legitimate interests, the delay is not likely to mislead the public, and the confidentiality of the inside information can be ensured.

Cryptoasset inside information means, as defined in Regulation 18(2) of the Cryptoassets Regulations, information of a precise nature, which has not been made public, relating, directly or indirectly, to—

(a) a relevant issuer of a relevant qualifying cryptoasset or a related instrument;

(b) a person responsible for the offer of a relevant qualifying cryptoasset or a related instrument;

(i) admitted to trading, or

(ii) subject to an application seeking admission to trading, or

(d) a relevant qualifying cryptoasset or related instrument,

which, if it were made public, would be likely to have a significant effect on the price of that relevant qualifying cryptoasset or related instrument.

Under UK MAR, inside information is generally speaking limited to information concerning issuers of financial instruments, those financial instruments themselves or related derivative financial instruments. The MARC regime extends to information about those persons responsible for the offer of a relevant qualifying cryptoasset or a related instrument and any operator of a qualifying cryptoasset trading platform on which a relevant qualifying cryptoasset trades.

Obligation to disclose cryptoasset inside information

Under Regulation 26 of the Cryptoassets Regulations, a relevant person (“A”) must, where required to do so by the FCA’s rules, inform the public of cryptoasset inside information that directly concerns A as soon as possible.

Information published to comply with regulation 26 must be published by the relevant issuer, person responsible for the offer or UK QCATP operator on their website where they have one.

Cryptoasset insider dealing

Cryptoasset insider dealing means using cryptoasset inside information as prohibited by Regulation 22 of the Cryptoasset Regulations, namely:-

(1) using the cryptoasset inside information by:

(a) acquiring or disposing of, or attempting to acquire or dispose of, a relevant qualifying cryptoasset or related instrument to which that information relates, for that person’s own account or on the account of another, either directly or indirectly; or

(b) cancelling or amending, or attempting to cancel or amend, an order concerning a relevant qualifying cryptoasset or related instrument to which that information relates, for that person’s own account or on the account of another, either directly or indirectly; and

(2) making a recommendation to, or inducing, another person, on the basis of the cryptoasset inside information to engage in the behaviour under (1) (a) or (b) above.

Examples are front running/pre-positioning and purchasing relevant qualifying cryptoassets with the knowledge of a forthcoming “airdrop” in relation to those cryptoassets which has not yet been publicly announced.

The FCA's rules include “legitimate behaviours” safe harbours similar to those found in UK MAR.

Cryptoasset unlawful disclosure

Cryptoasset unlawful disclosure means the prohibited disclosure of cryptoasset inside information as described in Regulation 24 of the Cryptoassets Regulations. A person within the definition below is prohibited from disclosing that information to any other person, unless the disclosure is made in the normal course of the exercise of their employment, profession or duties.

This applies to a person who possesses cryptoasset inside information as a result of:

(a) exercising administrative, management or supervisory functions of a relevant person;

(b) having a holding in the capital of: (i) a relevant issuer of that relevant qualifying cryptoasset or related instrument; (ii) a person responsible for the offer of that relevant qualifying cryptoasset or related instrument; or (iii) a person who applied for or is seeking admission to trading on a UK QCATP for that relevant qualifying cryptoasset;

(d) having acquired the information through criminal activity; or.

(e) another person (not with (a) to (d) who knows, or ought to have known, that the information is cryptoasset inside information.

FCA guidance sets out examples of those behaviours that indicate or do not indicate where disclosure is unlawful.

Cryptoasset market manipulation

Under Regulation 19 of the Cryptoassets Regulations, “market manipulation” means any of the following activities—

(a) entering into a transaction, placing an order to trade or engaging in any other behaviour which—

(i) gives, or is likely to give, false or misleading signals as to the supply of, demand for, or price of, a relevant qualifying cryptoasset or related instrument, or

(ii) secures, or is likely to secure, the price of a relevant qualifying cryptoasset or related instrument at an abnormal or artificial level;

(b) entering into a transaction, placing an order to trade or any other activity or behaviour which affects or is likely to affect the price of a relevant qualifying cryptoasset or related instrument, while employing a fictitious device or any other form of deception or contrivance;

(c) disseminating information, including the dissemination of rumours, through the media, including the internet, or by any other means which—

(i) gives, or is likely to give, false or misleading signals as to the supply of, demand for, or price of a relevant qualifying cryptoasset or related instrument, or

(ii) secures, or is likely to secure, the price of a relevant qualifying cryptoasset or related instrument at an abnormal or artificial level, where the person who engaged in the dissemination knew, or ought to have known, that the information was false or misleading;

(d) transmitting false or misleading information or providing false or misleading input in relation to a benchmark where the person who made the transmission or provided the input knew or ought to have known that it was false or misleading, or any other behaviour which manipulates the calculation of a benchmark.

Once again, in a manner similar to UK MAR, the FCA guidance provides non-exhaustive indicators of what may constitute cryptoasset market manipulation, factors are to be taken into account in determining whether a person’s behaviour amounts to manipulating transactions, and factors for identifying an abusive squeezed.

Examples are given of manipulating transactions and indicators of manipulative behaviour relating to the employment of a fictitious device or any other form of deception or contrivance.

The FCA set out factors which can be taken into account in determining whether behaviour amounts to wrongful dissemination.

An attempt to engage in cryptoasset market manipulation is also prohibited under Regulation 28 of the Cryptoassets Regulations. Such an attempt may include situations where the activity is started but is not completed – for example, an instruction to trade is given which is not acted upon.

Arrangements, systems and procedures for UK QCATP operators

Regulation 30(2) of the Cryptoassets Regulations requires, in relation to relevant qualifying cryptoassets, that UK QCATP operators establish and maintain effective arrangements, systems and procedures aimed at preventing, detecting and disrupting actual or attempted cryptoasset insider dealing and cryptoasset market manipulation. The FCA have made detailed rules for the purposes of ensuring that UK QCATP operators’ arrangements, systems and procedures are appropriate and proportionate in relation to the scale, size and nature of their business activity.

The arrangements, systems and procedures must:

(1) ensure effective and ongoing monitoring of:

(a) all orders received and transmitted on the qualifying cryptoasset trading platform;

(b) the full range of trading activities on the qualifying cryptoasset trading platform, including all transactions executed on the platform; and

(c) activities and communications relating to a qualifying cryptoasset which is subject to an application to be admitted to trading on the platform;

(2) enable the UK QCATP operator to analyse as quickly as practicable whether, on a case-by-case basis, a given order, transaction or activity is suspicious;

(3) enable the UK QCATP operator to prevent and/or disrupt any cryptoasset market abuse activity once detected; and

(4) enable the prompt and effective receipt and assessment of notifications of suspicious orders or transactions from cryptoasset intermediaries under regulation 30(3) of the Cryptoassets Regulations;

The UK QCATP must ensure that the arrangements, systems and procedures:

(1) provide for the analysis, individually and comparatively, of each and every transaction executed and order placed, modified, cancelled or rejected on the platform;

(2) have facilities to replay the order book in order to analyse the activity of a trading session in the context of algorithmic trading, including high-frequency trading;

(3) produce alerts in line with predefined parameters indicating activities requiring further analysis by the UK QCATP operator for the purposes of detecting potential cryptoasset market abuse activities;

(4) monitor activities and communications made internally within the UK QCATP operator as well as externally, such as on social media, public forums and chat rooms, blogs, newsletters and podcasts;

A UK QCATP operator is also subject to cryptoasset-specific:

(1) personal account dealing arrangements; and

(2) conflicts of interest requirements.

A UK QCATP operator must also, on a regular basis, organise and provide effective and comprehensive training to the staff involved in preventing, detecting and disrupting orders and transactions that could indicate the existence of cryptoasset market abuse activities, including the staff involved in processing orders and transactions.

A “large CATP operator” must ensure its arrangements, systems and procedures include the effective and ongoing monitoring of orders or transactions of relevant wallets that are settled on a distributed ledger (“on-chain activity”) to detect cryptoasset market abuse activity.

There are obligations imposed upon UK QCATP operators to notify suspicious orders and transactions.

Arrangements, systems and procedures for cryptoasset intermediaries

Likewise, there are obligations imposed on cryptoasset intermediaries to establish and maintain effective arrangements, systems and procedures aimed at preventing, detecting and disrupting actual or attempted cryptoasset insider dealing and cryptoasset market manipulation. This includes transaction surveillance and suspicious order and transaction reporting.

Cryptoasset insider lists

In accordance with Regulation 31(2)(a), a requirement to draw up cryptoasset insider lists, and form and content of cryptoasset insider lists applies to:-

(1) a relevant issuer;

(2) a person responsible for the offer; and

(3) a UK QCATP operator.

Our thoughts

The FCA have plainly thought carefully about designing the MARC regime, and it does not simply apply and replicate UK MAR in relation to cryptoassets. For those who propose to engage in cryptoasset-related business, whether as an issuer, an intermediary or as an operator of a qualifying trading platform, the obligations they will have to meet will be extensive and onerous. There may also be overlap between the UK MAR and UK MARC regimes given that a number of the provisions refer to both cryptoassets and related instruments where the latter may fall within the scope of UK MAR.

One concern arises from the unusual and complex nature of some cryptoassets, including the fact that “unbacked” cryptoassets are digital tokens that rely on supply and demand for their value rather than being supported by any underlying physical assets or currency. They can exhibit high price volatility and are pseudo-anonymous in nature. In addition, cryptoasset inside information may include information about those responsible for offering the cryptoasset and the platform on which the relevant cryptoasset is admitted to trade. These factors may lead to their being significant amounts of both true and potentially false information, rumour and speculation being created. This could become so prevalent as to involve overwhelming requirements to disclose information and/or notify suspicions.