On 20 October 2025, BlackRock’s iShares Bitcoin ETP, ticker IB1T, opened for trading on the London Stock Exchange. The Financial Conduct Authority lifted its ban on the retail sale of certain crypto products on 8 October 2025, in place since January 2021. The move gives UK retail investors a supervised way to own Bitcoin via a listed vehicle and could later allow inclusion in ISAs or pensions, affecting issuers, platforms and compliance teams.
Only exchange traded notes that track Bitcoin or Ethereum qualify. The FCA labels them “Restricted Mass Market Investments,” bringing extra disclosure duties and tight marketing limits.
Crypto derivatives remain off limits for retail buyers and every product must list on a UK-approved exchange. The United States approved spot Bitcoin ETFs in January 2024 and several EU countries already offer similar tools, so the UK is catching up rather than leading.
Product structure and market entrants
BlackRock chose an ETN structure. An ETN is a debt note, so investors carry issuer credit risk on top of Bitcoin price risk. An ETF, by contrast, normally holds the coins in custody.
Other issuers joined on the same day: 21Shares, Bitwise and WisdomTree secured permissions and prepared their own notes. 21Shares plans to add a Solana-staking product. Analysts guess that the UK crypto market could grow by roughly one fifth, and polls show that half of younger investors intend to take part.
Brokers must add the notes to their menus or liquidity will stay thin. Issuer solvency matters as much as Bitcoin’s price, and firms must rewrite marketing material to meet the new rules. If the notes become eligible for ISAs and pensions, more long-term money should flow in.
The first test is simple: watch early trading volumes and the assets that pile into each note to see whether the rule change turns into lasting use.
The London launch under new FCA rules creates a supervised path for UK retail exposure to Bitcoin, and the coming weeks will show whether structural changes and distribution efforts convert regulatory progress into durable adoption.
