Trading 212 secured UK self-invested personal pension (SIPP) approval from the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) in February, more than five years after first announcing the product. This marks a significant milestone for the platform, which has faced persistent customer complaints about the delay. Customers described the wait as 'unacceptable' and accused the company of 'missing the train' as rivals like Freetrade and InvestEngine launched pensions.

The FCA's nod allows Trading 212 to offer cryptocurrency exchange-traded notes to pension holders, a service already available from providers including AJ Bell and Interactive Investor. The approval follows the platform selling similar crypto-linked debt securities to retail investors in their Isas without permission for months, leading to regulatory scrutiny. Trading 212, which claims to be the UK's top investment platform, had hired SIPP specialists and poached talent from Vanguard and Fidelity in 2024 while seeking approval for 18 months.

The £600bn UK SIPP market holds assets for approximately 6.5 million customers.