The Financial Conduct Authority opened a Call for Input on tokenised gold and its opportunities and risks for UK wholesale markets on 14 September 2026. The publication is an information gathering exercise that precedes any rule proposal. Responses close on 23 October 2026 and are submitted to the FCA by email.
No rule text accompanies the Call for Input. The perimeter question the FCA raises is whether a tokenised gold product falls within the collective investment scheme regime in Part XVII of the Financial Services and Markets Act 2000, or within the alternative investment fund rules that apply in the United Kingdom. That characterisation determines whether operating the arrangement engages the general prohibition in Part II of the same Act, and therefore whether the operator requires authorisation.
The FCA names gold market participants, asset managers, technology providers and consumer groups among those it expects to respond. Bullion dealers, vault operators, custodians and issuers of gold backed tokens carry the immediate exposure, because the treatment of their existing products depends on the same perimeter question. Asset managers holding gold exposure and the technology providers building issuance and settlement rails have the same interest in how the FCA reads the definitions.
The Call for Input imposes no obligation and grants no relief. The FCA states that it will consider, after reviewing submissions, whether guidance or a dedicated regime for tokenised gold products is needed. Firms with a live product or a near term launch decide before 23 October 2026 whether to put their perimeter position to the regulator while the question is open rather than after it is settled.
Licentium advises firms on digital asset authorisation and perimeter questions in the United Kingdom and other jurisdictions. Work we undertake includes perimeter analysis for tokenised commodity products, drafting responses to regulator calls for input, and preparing authorisation applications for cryptoasset and fund operators.