Can you claim?
Does this apply where you are?
US: No single federal crypto-exchange regulator — oversight is split, with a general CFPB complaint route for consumer financial products/services
UK: Crypto activity remains largely unregulated in the UK as a matter of financial services regulation, which limits both FCA and Financial Ombudsman protections (only AML/marketing rules for crypto firms are currently regulated)
Europe: Markets in Crypto-Assets Regulation (EU) 2023/1114 (MiCA)
Your rights
No single federal crypto-exchange regulator — oversight is split, with a general CFPB complaint route for consumer financial products/services
- CFPB route
- Submit a complaint at consumerfinance.gov/complaint; the CFPB states "most companies respond within 15 days," and will forward the complaint to a different agency if it determines another regulator is better placed to help.
Crypto activity remains largely unregulated in the UK as a matter of financial services regulation, which limits both FCA and Financial Ombudsman protections (only AML/marketing rules for crypto firms are currently regulated)
- Regulatory status
- The FCA's own current consumer guidance (updated 29/01/2026) states plainly: "crypto is largely unregulated in the UK, so it is highly unlikely you will be covered by the Financial Services Compensation Scheme" and "as crypto activity is not regulated yet in the UK, there is no safety net if things go wrong." The marketing of crypto is regulated (firms must show prominent risk warnings and can't offer joining/referral bonuses) — use the FCA Firm Checker to see if a firm is on the FCA's register.
Markets in Crypto-Assets Regulation (EU) 2023/1114 (MiCA)
- In force dates
- "This Regulation shall apply from 30 December 2024", confirmed directly on the operative text of the regulation (Article 149). Titles III and IV (on asset-referenced tokens/e-money tokens, i.e. stablecoins) applied earlier, from 30 June 2024, 'by way of derogation'. As of today, MiCA is fully in force across all titles.
- Complaint handling duty
- MiCA requires issuers of asset-referenced tokens to "put in place a clear procedure for handling complaints received from holders" (recital 49, given effect by the operative Article 31, 'Complaints-handling procedures'); crypto-asset service providers (including exchanges) are subject to equivalent complaints-handling obligations under the Regulation's Title V provisions, which took effect on the same 30 December 2024 general application date.
Evidence to gather
- Account notice and reason given
- KYC documents submitted
- Support ticket history
- Transaction history and source of funds
Steps
- Gather your evidence (see the list above).
- Send a written complaint to the business or provider, citing the rule for your region from "Your rights" above.
- If unresolved by their deadline, escalate using the route named in "Your rights" for your region.
- If still unresolved, consider your region's ombudsman, regulator, or small claims court — see "Your rights" for the specific option.
Your tools
Information, not legal advice. Figures verified against the official sources linked above.