Could Bitcoin's Associations with Terrorism Lead to its Ban?
One of the more complex aspects of global terrorist activities is to be traced in financial transactions. And it has become more challenging since the Bitcoin came into the picture. The Bitcoin anonymity favors terrorist funding. Over the past few months, the United States Central Commands have been studying the alternative payment methods terrorist organizations raise and transfer money around the globe to support their activities. Digital currencies proved to be of the most efficient mechanisms for the transfer of funds due to their decentralized nature that facilitates anonymous....
Related News
At the first evening of the Bitcoin conference in Amsterdam, about 20 Bitcoiners from Argentina, Australia, Belgium, Canada, Germany, Hungary, Israel, the Netherlands and the UK gathered around a dimly lit table in the first floor of a café near the conference venue to discuss the Bitcoin Foundation's efforts to start "national chapters". There had been some irrititation about the Foundation's plans and not everybody was happy with the way they were executed. So it became obvious that a meeting of the founders of national Bitcoin associations would make sense. Having met many people from....
What seems more likely, however, is how organizations like IS get their funding through money laundering, a scheme that has been plaguing traditional finance for quite some time. The topic of the involvement of Bitcoin in terrorism funding has been kicked around a few times in the past, but it looks like there is no end in sight. Amit Kumar, a US-based terror expert, feels it is vital to disrupting terrorism financing, references to Bitcoin in this context as playing a role that further warrants investigation. It is not the first time someone mentions Bitcoin and terrorism funding in the....
"I see the promise of these new technologies, but I also see the reality: cryptocurrencies have been used to launder the profits of online drug traffickers; they’ve been a tool to finance terrorism," Yellen said.
“We solemnly call on consumers to [...] be vigilant and stay away from NFT-related illegal financial activities,” said the associations. The China Banking Association, China Internet Finance Association, and Securities Association of China issued a joint statement warning the public about the “hidden risks” of investing in nonfungible tokens, or NFTs.In a Wednesday notice, the three associations launched initiatives aimed at encouraging innovation in the crypto and blockchain space focused on NFTs as well as “resolutely curb[ing] the tendency of NFT financialization and securitization” to....
Digital currencies such as bitcoin are attractive for terrorism financing, according to Australia’s financial intelligence agency, AUSTRAC, which is calling for them to regulate it under its anti-money laundering and counter-terrorism financing laws. A report published by AUSTRAC, Terrorism financing in Australia 2014, stated that terrorism financing was turning its attention to electronic and online payment methods, which is likely to rise over time. The report said: Terrorist groups engaged in radicalisation, recruitment and communication online (such as through social media) are a....