Is BCB Group crypto friendly?

Yes for crypto businesses and institutions, no for individuals. BCB is a payments and settlement provider, not a bank.

CBL Score: 10 of 16

CriterionScoreSource
Accepts exchange transfersyes (2)source · checked 8 September 2026
Stablecoin off-rampyes (2)source · checked 8 September 2026
Business accounts for Web3yes (2)source · checked 8 September 2026
Custodypartial (1)source · checked 8 September 2026
Staking and yieldpartial (1)source · checked 8 September 2026
Cardno (0)source · checked 8 September 2026
Multiple jurisdictionsyes (2)source · checked 8 September 2026
Open to retailno (0)source · checked 8 September 2026

Total 10 of 16. Yes scores 2, partial 1, no 0. A secondary source is press or a third party rather than the bank or its regulator. Unverified means no source could be found; the score stands until one is.

Score history

Scores are revised when a bank's documents change. Each revision is dated and sourced.

8 September 2026Staking and yieldno to partialsource

Standing

JurisdictionUK · EEA
TypeBusiness banking
Health tagWatch A 2023-24 FCA skilled-person review, senior compliance departures, limited published financials, and a French DASP registration that lapsed on 2 July 2026 at the end of the MiCA transition with no MiCA licence found in the registers. · checked 26 August 2026
Last verified8 September 2026

What BCB Group allows and blocks

Allowed

  • Business payment accounts in more than 30 currencies, with GBP over Faster Payments, CHAPS and SWIFT, EUR over SEPA, SEPA Instant, T2 and SWIFT, and USD over Fedwire
  • Instant, free settlement with other BLINC members, including exchanges and market makers, 24 hours a day in USD, GBP, EUR, CHF, SGD, JPY, AUD and NZD
  • Accounts for exchanges, liquidity providers, brokers, funds, fintechs and remittance firms. Coinbase, Kraken, Gemini, Bitstamp and Crypto.com are named clients
  • Fiat to crypto and crypto to fiat conversion, with USDC named, settled into SEPA or Faster Payments
  • OTC trading in fiat, stablecoins and crypto through BCB Markets (Switzerland), including EURCV and assets on Polygon and Tron
  • Stablecoin Earn: yield on USDC, USDT and EURC lent under a master loan agreement and placed in a USD money market fund vault
  • Virtual IBANs and EUR e-money accounts through the French EMI

Blocked or restricted

  • No accounts for individuals. Crypto trading is limited to Relevant Persons such as investment professionals and high net worth entities, and is closed to US persons and most UK residents
  • USDT services are not available to EU-based clients
  • No card of any kind
  • No staking
  • Onboarding and payments refused for a long list of countries including Russia, China, Iran, Nigeria, Pakistan (payments) and Venezuela
  • No unregulated money service businesses, illegal gambling, adult industry or arms businesses
  • Crypto services in France: the AMF DASP registration lapsed on 2 July 2026 at the end of the MiCA transition, and no BCB entity appears on the MiCA CASP trackers checked

Opening an account

Fees that matter

Regulatory history

2020FCA authorised BCB Payments Limited as an Authorised Payment Institution (FRN 807377) in January 2020, after a 2018 registration as a money remitter. source
2024The FCA issued a section 166 skilled person notice in late 2023. It closed in 2024 with BCB saying it was in good standing. Five senior executives, including the CEO and the chief compliance officer, left between mid 2023 and September 2024. source
2026France granted an ACPR e-money licence and an AMF DASP registration in April 2024. The AMF register shows the DASP registration of BCB Markets (Europe) lapsed on 2 July 2026 at the end of the MiCA transition period, with no MiCA CASP authorisation found. source

Questions about BCB Group

Can I open a BCB Group account as an individual?

No. BCB serves businesses and institutions in the digital asset economy, from SMEs to exchanges and funds. Its crypto trading is limited to Relevant Persons such as investment professionals and high net worth entities, and it excludes US persons and most UK residents.

Does BCB Group let me send money to Kraken or Coinbase?

Yes, for business clients. Exchanges are BCB's core client base, and Coinbase, Kraken, Gemini and Bitstamp are named on its site. If your counterparty is also a BLINC member, the transfer settles instantly and free of charge at any hour.

Is BCB Group a bank?

No. BCB Payments Limited is an FCA authorised payment institution in the UK, BCB Payments (Europe) is a French e-money institution, and BCB Markets (Switzerland) is a VQF SRO member. None of them is a bank, and there is no deposit insurance.

Is BCB Group licensed under MiCA?

Not as far as public registers show. Its French DASP registration lapsed on 2 July 2026 when the MiCA transition ended, and no BCB entity appeared on the two MiCA CASP trackers checked in September 2026. BCB said in August 2025 that it had filed a MiCA application.

Closest alternatives

7/16ClearBank
Yes for regulated crypto businesses, no for individuals.
13/16Bank Frick
Yes for crypto businesses, intermediaries and wealthy private clients. No walk-in retail.
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