European Commission to Apply Anti-Money Laundering Directive to Bitcoin Startups
The European Commission and its partnering agencies including Europol have become increasingly active in its investigation on terrorist financing and and the use of digital currencies such as bitcoin in the dark web. As a part of its global initiative to reduce and restrict financial flows of terrorists and money laundering, the European Commission has proposed to regulate digital currency exchange platforms under the scope of the Anti-Money Laundering Directive, which would require bitcoin exchanges to keep sensitive customer data records for bitcoin-to-fiat trading. “These platforms have....
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The European Banking Authority (EBA) has advised that the European Commission establish a regulatory regime specific to virtual currencies such as bitcoin. Commenting on the commission’s proposal to amend the existing European anti-money laundering directive, the EBA expresses the opinion that, in the long term, oversight of digital currencies should not fall under regular anti-money laundering provisions, but rather under a specialized EU body. In a response to the commission published by the EBA in August 2016, the banking authority suggests that the existing anti-money laundering....
Last month, the European Commission published a draft directive proposing to extend anti-money laundering (AML) regulation to both virtual currency exchange services and custodial wallet providers. The draft suggests that many Bitcoin companies operating within the European Union will need to apply know-your-customer (KYC) types of checks on their users, to be enforced by 2017. Phrasing of the directive left some uncertainty over its extent, however —in particular over what are considered “wallet providers offering custodial services of credentials necessary to access virtual currencies.”....
Bitcoin exchanges in Europe are soon to be regulated under the scope of Europe’s Anti-Money Laundering Directive. The European Commission issued a statement late Tuesday night detailing new efforts to control financial flows and money transfers, which it described as aimed at subverting terrorist financing. Among these mechanisms are bitcoin and other virtual currencies. The Commission “proposes to bring virtual currency exchange platforms under the scope of the Anti-Money Laundering Directive, so that these platforms have to apply customer due diligence controls when exchanging virtual....
The European Commission published a new directive draft last week proposing to extend strict anti-money laundering (AML) regulation to both virtual currency exchange services and custodial wallet providers. Intended to counter “money launderers, tax evaders, terrorists, fraudsters and other criminals,” the directive could mean that many Bitcoin companies in the E.U. will have to apply know your customer (KYC) types of checks on their users. The proposal, which particularly focuses on terrorist financing, intends to restrict the anonymous use of virtual currencies, presumably referring to....
The European Commission published a draft directive last week proposing to amend existing anti-money laundering rules to include virtual currencies such as bitcoin. If adopted, exchanges as well as custodial wallet providers will need to collect customers’ identity documents and report suspicious activity on their platform to relevant authorities. In an attempt to avoid regulatory overreach, a group of Dutch Bitcoin startups and experts is now reaching out to the Dutch Ministry of FInance offering their expertise, hoping to potentially adjust the proposed directive amendment. Uncertainty....