Santander To Block UK Transfers to Crypto Exchanges in 2023

• The sum of UK customers who have fallen victim to crypto fraud has increased significantly.
• Contextually, Santander announced to limit all crypto exchange transactions.
• Santander bank’s mobile and internet transactions will be limited to £1,000 and £3,000

The Spanish Bank Santander’s UK branch declared in a notice on its website that it will restrict UK clients from transferring real-time payments to crypto exchanges. From November 15 onwards, the bank will take protective measures to safeguard customers from fraud.

Significantly, Santander bank intends to halt all real-time crypto exchange payments, and transactions made through telephone banking, in-branch payments, internet, and mobile banking by 2023.

In detail, starting from November 15, Santander will join the ranks of other UK retail banks in limiting client remittances to Bitcoin exchanges. Transfers to crypto exchanges using mobile and internet banking will be limited to just 1,000 pounds per transaction and 3,000 pounds total in any rolling 30-day period for Santander customers.

However, customers will still be able to receive Bitcoin exchange payments into their accounts in the meantime.

Recently, Santander has seen an increase in UK customers falling victim to crypto fraud. Accordingly, a Santander bank spokesperson said:

Keeping our customers safe from cryptocurrency scams is a top priority. We intend to further protect customers by blocking all faster payments we identify to cryptocurrency exchanges from Santander accounts.

The bank plans to implement this change in 2023. Faster Payment is the infrastructure that enables real-time bank transactions for the majority of UK bank accounts. According to an emailed statement by Pay UK, it is “working with authorities and the payments sector to strengthen protection for fraud victims.”