PANews March 3 news, according to Cointelegraph, the UK Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) said in a statement on February 28 that Olumide Osunkoya illegally operated a cryptocurrency ATM network without the necessary regulatory license. Therese Chambers, joint executive director of FCA enforcement and market supervision, said: "This is the first criminal sentence in the UK for unregistered cryptocurrency activities, sending a clear message: those who flout the rules, try to evade regulation and engage in criminal activities will face serious consequences."

The FCA sued Osunkoya on September 10 last year, accusing him of operating unregistered cryptocurrency ATMs in 28 locations through his company GidiPlus Ltd between December 2021 and March 2022, processing 2.6 million pounds (about 3.14 million U.S. dollars) in transactions. The regulator said he later transferred these ATMs from GidiPlus and personally operated up to 12 machines under pseudonyms and fake companies to evade detection, and failed to ensure that these machines were not used for money laundering. Osunkoya was also the first person in the UK to be prosecuted for operating an illegal cryptocurrency ATM network. He pleaded guilty to five charges on September 30 of that year.