Bitcoin Organized Crime Research Funded by Germany and Austria
The Austrian and German governments are funding a research effort focused on the use of digital currencies in organized crime. Dubbed ‘BitCrime’, the initiative is backed by a number of governmental agencies in the two countries, and is split into two sub-projects. The German sub-project is primarily supported by the German Federal Ministry of Education and Research, and has a budget of €1.8m (roughly $2m). Other supporting institutions include the country’s Federal Criminal Police Office, the University of Münster, and a number of federal offices dedicated to law enforcement and financial....
Related News
A bilateral research initiative sees Germany and Austria funding the project which is focused on organized financial crime specifically committed with virtual currencies. The project, titled ‘BITCRIME’ will see funding from the German Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF) and the Austrian Federal Ministry for Transport, Innovation and Technology (BMVIT). The project will see a total of €2.4 million (approx. $2.75 million) and will span a total of 25 months. Citing the growth of the use of virtual currencies which are independent of central banks or other authorities, the....
Swiss fintech firm Leonteq has introduced its digital asset products in two neighboring jurisdictions, Germany and Austria. The company is launching its crypto offering with the help of a Frankfurt-based bank and in response to interest from institutional and private investors. Leonteq Provides German and Austrian Investors With Exposure to Major Cryptocurrencies Leonteq is presenting an extensive range of products to investors in Germany and Austria after a successful expansion in its home market, Switzerland. It offers exposure to a total of 18 crypto assets, including bitcoin (BTC),....
One of Australia's primary national law enforcement agencies, the Australian Crime Commission (ACC), is investigating bitcoin's role in organized crime in an official operation known as 'Project Longstrike'. According to a report published by Reuters earlier today, ACC Executive Director Judy Lind said that investigators were aware of and would be monitoring "misuse of virtual currencies to facilitate criminal activity." She said: "Organized crime groups continue to make use of darknets to harbor trading in illicit commodities, including child exploitation material, illicit drugs and....
Digital currencies such as Bitcoin are enabling individual criminals, who come together on an ad-hoc basis, to boost the "crime-as-a-service" business model. The newly-released Europol report titled, 'Exploring Tomorrow's Organised Crime', states: "Virtual currencies increasingly enable individuals to act as freelance criminal entrepreneurs operating on a crime-as-a-service business model without the need for a sophisticated criminal infrastructure to receive and launder money." The research, aimed at identifying the key trends in the EU criminal landscape, revealed that such developments....
Glenn Hutchins said up to 90% of $100 bills are "used for organized crime and tax evasion."