HTX leaves the UK after FCA settlement; residual assets need a separate withdrawal process

HTX is no longer active in the United Kingdom following a settlement with the Financial Conduct Authority. New UK users cannot register and consumers cannot make deposits, the regulator said Thursday. Existing users with residual assets face a separate process for arranging a withdrawal.

The FCA announcement says the High Court undertakings prevent HTX, formerly Huobi, from knowingly promoting cryptoasset services unlawfully to UK consumers. The settlement terms are confidential and do not constitute an admission of liability or wrongdoing.

The enforcement timeline

The proceedings began on October 21, 2025. The FCA publicly announced its action on February 10, 2026, before the October 29 settlement announcement. Its earlier statement concerned financial promotions on websites and social media and said that being based overseas did not remove a firm from the UK marketing rules.

The regulator now says HTX will not target, solicit or actively seek to engage UK consumers. This is a change in access and promotion in a particular jurisdiction. It is not a statement that the entire international exchange has closed, or a finding in this announcement about the value of its reserves.

Why 48 hours is not a universal countdown

HTX’s UK services notice says restricted UK accounts cannot make deposits, trade or transact on its products. Eligible individuals who still hold assets can contact customer support to request a one-time 48-hour withdrawal window, subject to the applicable conditions and the platform’s checks.

If approved, the user must personally withdraw the remaining assets within that window. HTX says it will not transfer them on the user’s behalf. After full withdrawal, the account will be closed.

The important number is therefore conditional. The notice does not say that every affected customer has the same 48-hour period starting from the publication of Thursday’s FCA statement. Treating it as a single public deadline would turn an approval-based process into a deadline the documents do not specify.

The notice also refers to identity, ownership, sanctions, anti-money-laundering, fraud and account-security checks. It says reporting obligations may apply. Those conditions matter because an exchange’s general withdrawal procedure is not, by itself, a determination that a particular person or transaction qualifies.

Two sources answer different questions

The FCA’s statement establishes the enforcement outcome and the undertaking to stop unlawful UK promotions. HTX’s notice supplies its operating procedure for residual assets. Neither document replaces an account-specific response confirming whether a withdrawal request has been approved.

For someone reconciling an old balance, the unresolved item is the status of that request, not whether a trading button has reappeared. The documents separate the return of remaining assets from permission to resume normal account activity. An authorized withdrawal window would not reopen the full trading service.

The FCA directs users to HTX’s published arrangements and its own Firm Checker. It also cautions that cryptoassets remain high-risk. The immediate news is narrower: HTX’s UK exit now has a court-backed settlement, while existing eligible users still need the platform’s specified process for residual assets.

Sources: the FCA’s October 29 settlement statement, its February enforcement announcement, and HTX’s UK services notice, accessed October 29. This report describes published arrangements and is not legal or investment advice.