Guides

How to Submit FCA Requirements (For UK Users only)

Step-by-step guide to completing FCA compliance for UK users in the KYC flow.

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FCA (Financial Conduct Authority) compliance is required for all UK users before they can complete a crypto purchase.

Why is it required?

UK’s Financial Conduct Authority extended its Financial Promotions regime to cryptoassets under the Financial Services and Markets Act 2000 (Financial Promotion) (Amendment) Order 2023. This means any business communicating or approving crypto-related promotions to UK retail consumers must comply with strict FCA rules regardless of where that business is based.

The regulation introduces three mandatory requirements before a UK user can complete a crypto purchase:

Investor Categorization

Users must be classified as a High Net Worth Investor or Self-Certified Sophisticated Investor. Retail consumers who do not meet either threshold are restricted from purchasing high-risk investments.

Risk Disclosure Agreement

Users must read and acknowledge a compliance agreement that clearly sets out the risks of investing in cryptoassets, including the possibility of losing their entire investment.

Appropriateness Assessment

Users must pass a short knowledge quiz to demonstrate they understand the risks before they are permitted to proceed. The FCA also mandates a 24-hour cooling-off period for first-time investors before they can place an order.

How it works?

FCA

Different FCA Status

StatusMeaning
CATEGORIZATION_PENDINGThe user has not yet completed investor categorization. Render and submit the categorization quiz.
AGREEMENT_PENDINGCategorization passed. The user must now read and sign the compliance agreement.
RISK_ASSESSMENT_PENDINGAgreement accepted. The user must complete the risk knowledge quiz before proceeding.
RISK_ASSESSMENT_FAILEDThe user failed the risk assessment. They can retry as long as the maximum number of attempts has not been reached.
BLOCKED_RETRYThe user has exceeded the maximum number of retry attempts. No submission is allowed until the 24-hour wait period expires.
COOLING_PERIODThe user has passed all steps. A mandatory FCA cooling-off period is now active before the first order can be placed.

When to integrate?

If a user requires FCA compliance, Get Additional Requirements API will include "type": "FCA" in the response alongside any other pending KYC requirements. The status in response indicates the next pending FCA step awaiting completion.

1{
2  "data": {
3    "formsRequired": [
4      {
5        "type": "FCA",
6        "metadata": {
7          "status": "AGREEMENT_PENDING"
8        }
9      }
10    ]
11  }
12}

How to Integrate?

1

Check if FCA is Required

Call Get Additional Requirements API with the quoteId. If the response includes a form entry with type: FCA, the user must complete the FCA flow.

1{
2  "data": {
3    "formsRequired": [
4      {
5        "type": "FCA",
6        "metadata": {
7          "status": "CATEGORIZATION_PENDING"
8        }
9      }
10    ]
11  }
12}
2

Fetch the Current FCA Step Data

Call Get FCA Requirements API with the current status to fetch the FCA requirements of the step.

3

Present the Step to the User and Collect Input

Using the data returned from the previous step, render the appropriate UI for the current FCA status.

StatusWhat to show
CATEGORIZATION_PENDINGRender the investor categorization quiz and collect answers
AGREEMENT_PENDINGDisplay the compliance agreement and collect the user’s signature
RISK_ASSESSMENT_PENDINGRender the risk knowledge quiz and collect answers
RISK_ASSESSMENT_FAILEDInform the user they failed and present the quiz again for retry
BLOCKED_RETRYShow a waiting screen with the canRetryAfter timestamp
COOLING_PERIODInform the user that FCA is complete and they are in a mandatory cooling-off period
4

Submit the Current FCA Step Data

Call Submit FCA Requirements API with the user’s input for the current status.

5

Get the Updated FCA Status

After every successful submission, call Get FCA Status API to retrieve the updated status.

StatusAction
COMPLETEDFCA flow is complete
Any other statusGo back to Step 2 with the new status and continue

API Overview

Get FCA Requirements

Fetches the data for the current FCA step.

Submit FCA Requirements

Submits the user’s input for the current FCA step - categorization answers, agreement signature, or risk assessment responses.

Get FCA Status

Retrieves the updated FCA status after each submission, indicating the next pending step.

API Errors

HTTP StatusError CodeMessage
4002002Failed to get FCA status
HTTP StatusError CodeMessage
4002002Failed to get FCA status
4002003Failed to get categorization quiz
4002006User has already completed categorization stage
4002007User is not eligible for FCA categorization
4002016Failed to get risk assessment
4002018Failed to get cooling period status / Unable to retrieve blocked retry information
4002019Failed to get agreement
4002023Invalid status for current FCA status
4002024Invalid status parameter
4002025User is not eligible for FCA flow
4002026FCA process already completed
4009999User has attempted maximum SETs available
4009999First complete user categorization
4009999User has already completed categorization
4009999User has completed assessment
HTTP StatusError CodeMessage
4002002Failed to get FCA status
4002004Failed to submit categorization answers
4002005Failed to submit compliance agreement
4002006User has already completed categorization stage
4002007User is not eligible for FCA categorization
4002008Invalid user state for categorization submission
4002009Answers must be a non-empty array
4002010Each answer must have questionId and answerId
4002011Answer ID must be 'A' or 'B'
4002012Duplicate answers provided for same question
4002013Signature is required
4002014User must complete categorization before signing agreement
4002015Agreement already signed
4002017Failed to submit risk assessment
4002023Invalid status for current FCA status
4002024Invalid status parameter / Missing required fields
4002025User is not eligible for FCA flow
4002026FCA process already completed
4009999User has attempted maximum SETs available
4009999User cannot attempt SET_A (or SET_B) consecutively
4009999User has already completed categorization
4009999Assessment set not found
4009999Question with ID <id> not found
4009999Answer with ID <id> for question <id> not found
4009999Question <id> not valid for current set <set>
4009999Missing answers for questions: <ids>
4009999User has completed assessment