A UK court has handed down a historic four-year prison sentence to Olumide Osunkoya, marking the first criminal conviction for unregistered cryptocurrency activity in the country. The ruling sets a strong precedent against illegal crypto operations, signaling a strict regulatory stance by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA).

Osunkoya, through his company GidiPlus Ltd, operated a network of unregistered crypto ATMs across 28 locations between December 2021 and March 2022. These machines processed £2.6 million ($3.14 million) in transactions without the necessary regulatory approval. When the FCA began investigating, Osunkoya attempted to evade detection by transferring control of the ATMs and operating 12 machines under a fake name and company.

His illegal activities didn’t stop there. Osunkoya also engaged in money laundering by failing to prevent illicit transactions through his ATMs. Additionally, he forged four bank statements to pass wealth checks at a crypto exchange and created a fake identity to establish a company under an alias. Upon being charged in September 2023, he pleaded guilty to five offenses, including possessing criminal property—£19,540 ($24,567) in illicit cash.

Judge Gregory Perrins, in his sentencing, condemned Osunkoya’s actions as a “deliberate and calculated defiance” of financial regulations. The FCA emphasized that this case demonstrates the serious consequences of circumventing crypto laws in the UK.

The sentencing follows a 2023 FCA crackdown on illegal crypto ATMs, which saw authorities shut down 30 unregistered machines. The regulator continues to warn that cryptocurrency remains largely unregulated in the UK and carries significant financial risks.