The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) of the U.K. has announced a lawsuit against the cryptocurrency exchange HTX for illegally marketing digital asset services within the country.
Legal proceedings were initiated by the FCA in London’s High Court against the platform previously known as Huobi, as detailed in a statement sent via email on Thursday.
The regulator had already warned since 2023 that HTX, acquired by Tron founder Justin Sun in 2022, as noted by the Bloomberg Billionaires Index, might be offering unauthorized financial services. The FCA’s statement did not mention Sun.
Previously, the FCA urged consumers to steer clear of Huobi, citing its lack of authorization to provide financial services in the U.K.
“This action underscores our commitment to safeguard consumers and maintain the integrity of U.K. financial markets,” stated an FCA representative. “While we’ve observed some crypto firms adapting well to our promotional regulations, we will take decisive action against those that breach our rules.”
HTX has not responded to CoinDesk’s request for a statement.
