Key Points
- Strike, a Bitcoin payments app, has been launched in the UK, expanding its services to 100 countries globally.
- The app allows UK users to buy, sell, send, withdraw, and make global payments with Bitcoin and Lightning Network.
The Bitcoin payments app Strike has been launched in the United Kingdom. This move allows eligible individuals and businesses to buy, sell, send, withdraw, and make global payments using Bitcoin.
Strike’s Expansion
Strike’s CEO, Jack Mallers, views the UK’s 67 million population and its rank as the sixth-largest global economy as significant opportunities for Bitcoin adoption. This launch in the UK comes after the firm’s European rollout in April. Strike is now available in 100 countries and territories globally, including the U.S., Latin America, and Africa.
Mallers expressed excitement about offering services in the UK, while complying with local regulations for Bitcoin and crypto companies. He emphasized the company’s commitment to promoting Bitcoin adoption globally and driving financial innovation and inclusion forward in the UK.
The custodial iOS and Android app allows UK users to buy Bitcoin directly with free unlimited GBP deposits from their bank account instantly. The firm also offers automatic conversion and scheduled recurring purchases. Customers can sell their Bitcoin and withdraw it to their bank accounts, transfer it to their self-custodial wallet, or make payments instantly over the Bitcoin or Lightning Network.
Strike’s Features
Strike also offers free on-chain withdrawals, designed to support Bitcoin’s use at scale. However, users must be flexible enough to accept a target confirmation time of around 24 hours, with faster on-chain transactions still requiring a sliding scale of fees.
Strike customers have a Lightning Address to simplify the process of receiving payments. Users can select whether to receive Lightning Address payments in Bitcoin or GBP. Senders can choose whether to send from their Bitcoin or GBP balances over Lightning.
UK users can leverage Strike’s global peer-to-peer transfers via Lightning, allowing them to send from their GBP balance to a friend’s Strike account instantly anywhere Strike is available. The value received can be in Bitcoin, GBP, euros, U.S. dollars, or USDT.
Strike’s Send Globally feature allows UK users to make fast, low-cost local currency remittances, turning GBP into foreign currencies in eligible countries. This feature uses Bitcoin’s Lightning Network as a global payment rail.
Strike Private offers a service for high-net-worth individuals, family offices, and corporations looking to buy and sell larger amounts of Bitcoin over £100,000.
UK Regulations Compliance
To comply with UK regulations, UK users must provide their investor classification and pass a knowledge test called an Appropriateness Assessment. Users have two classification options: Restricted investor and High net worth investor.
The knowledge test includes understanding the risks involved in investing in Bitcoin, that Strike is a custodial provider managing assets on behalf of users, and that no investor protection is available. Users have two attempts to pass the test before a 24-hour pause. Once passed, there is a 24-hour cooling-off period before users can access the Strike app.
Strike Learn provides an education hub to help users understand more about the service, Bitcoin, and potential risks. UK customers are shown risk warnings to comply with local rules.
In 2021, the UK’s financial regulator, the Financial Conduct Authority, banned the sale of crypto derivatives and exchange-traded products to retail investors. However, the UK’s stance on cryptocurrency regulation has been evolving.
The UK’s Financial Services and Markets Act 2023 provided the groundwork for the nation’s regulators to oversee stablecoins and other crypto activities. The UK introduced new regulations for supervising the country’s Digital Securities Sandbox in December.
The UK’s new crypto advertising rules were introduced in October last year. The regulatory changes caused some crypto firms to suspend services in the UK. Others, like Coinbase, have started requiring similar risk-acknowledgment forms from UK users to comply with FCA rules.
In April, UK Economic Secretary to The Treasury Bim Afolami said the government would legislate by the end of July on a new regulatory framework for crypto assets. However, those plans have been derailed by the election campaign.
