UK crypto firms can now apply for authorization as of Sept. 30, bringing Bitcoin holders closer to a rulebook that will treat coins pledged as qualifying borrowing collateral differently from coins transferred into lending for yield. The distinction could matter when a platform fails: safeguarded assets and a contractual promise to return equivalent coins give customers different starting points for seeking recovery.

The Financial Conduct Authority now allows firms to apply for authorization or vary their permissions through its Connect system. But the safeguards in the rules it finalized June 30 are forthcoming, with the new regime expected to begin Oct. 25, 2027. An application today does not establish authorization or bring those…