Cryptocurrency exchange, Bitfinex, has reportedly strengthened its know your customer (KYC) requirements, sending an email to verified users asking for more identifying information. Additional personal data requested According to a Dec. 27 report from the Block, the purpose of the email from Bitfinex was to enhance the exchange’s due-diligence procedures, and bring all of its client accounts “to the same level.” Verified users were apparently asked to share information on the source of — and use of — funds, along with proof of residential address, such as a utility bill. Constant drive to improve compliance Bitfinex Chief Technology Officer, Paolo …

Cryptocurrency exchange Poloniex announced a new account tier — dubbed Level 1 — allowing for up to $10,000 in daily withdrawals without requiring full Know Your Client (KYC) onboarding. According to the announcement published by the exchange on Dec. 19, the new account tier has been created in reaction to user feedback. The post reads: “We’ve heard your feedback time and time again about wanting to use Poloniex without giving up your identity. We’ve wanted to make this a reality for a while now and are sorry it has taken us longer than we’d like.” Anonymous trading From now on, …

The deadline is rapidly approaching. 5AMLD — the Fifth Anti-Money Laundering Directive — is a piece of legislation that brings fiat-to-crypto exchanges and custodial wallets across the European Union under a new first-of-its-kind regulatory framework. Exchanges must achieve compliance with the rules by January 10, 2020. Time is ticking away, causing some exchanges to scramble, while others stand ready to roll out compliance procedures. David Carlisle knows a thing or two about crypto and regulations. As former United States Treasury Anti-Money Laundering (AML) specialist and the current Head of Community at the blockchain analytics provider Elliptic, Carlisle has inside knowledge …

After BottlePay’s shutdown announcement last week, two more European cryptocurrency firms have shut down because of the upcoming Anti-Money Laundering (AML) rules in the European Union. Online crypto gaming platform ChopCoin and mining pool Simplecoin both announced that they are shutting down in under a month in a notice on their website. Both firms cite the EU’s upcoming Anti-Money Laundering Directive that would require the firms to adopt Know Your Client (KYC) measures as the reason for shutting down. Stringent reporting requirements Simplecoin explains that the EU’s proposed directive will subject its service to a wide range of AML and …

The Monero Compliance Workgroup has stated that the Monero (XMR) network is not subject to U.S. Financial Crimes and Enforcement Network (FinCEN) guidelines regarding the Funds Travel Rule, in a Dec. 5 blog post. What is the Funds Travel Rule? The Funds Travel Rule requires financial institutions who are sending and/or receiving funds to store and transmit certain information about the transfer if it is valued at over $3,000 or equivalent amount. However, in its May 2019 guidelines, FinCEN states that: “If a given transmission protocol is unable to accommodate such information, the obligated person may provide such information in …

The decentralized cryptocurrency exchange (DEX) CryptoBridge announced that it is closing down in a message on its website. In the announcement, the exchange warns users that all of the firm’s services and servers will terminate after Dec. 15. Users will be able to withdraw funds from the exchange until the last day of operation, but deposits will be closed after Dec. 3. The announcement reads: “Please note that user verification is required by EU law for all withdrawals. We highly recommend that you start the process as early as possible as verification can take a few days.” Scammers are impersonating …

It’s the clichéd rhetoric of choice for anyone seeking to discredit crypto. An ace in the hole for any argument against its proliferation. The go-to thesis for those who know very little about cryptocurrency but wish to appear otherwise. The idea that cryptocurrencies are solely utilized within illicit activities has become both a tool for mass media to disparage the industry and, for many, a reason to steer well clear. But besides being a tired stereotype, it may also be true. That’s one of the prevailing problems with stereotypes: While many derive from truth, they often represent an oversimplified — …

Major American cryptocurrency exchange Coinbase has been awarded a patent for a system that identifies and flags non-compliant accounts. A filing with the United States Patent and Trademark Office on Nov. 19 details a system containing a scoring model that “determines a compliance score for each one of the accounts based on the respective factors associated with the respective account.” The system then compares the compliance score for each account to detect those accounts that fail compliance standards. Eliminating non-compliant accounts After a flagging unit identifies purportedly non-compliant accounts, the system assesses whether they are good or bad, enters the …

In 2019, the total volume of cryptocurrency-related fraud and theft resulted in losses worth $4.4 billion, according to CipherTrace’s report for the third quarter of 2019. In its “Cryptocurrency Anti-Money Laundering Report, 2019 Q3,” security research firm CipherTrace delved into the 120 most popular cryptocurrency exchanges’ compliance with Know Your Customer (KYC) and Anti-Money Laundering (AML) requirements and analyzed patterns in crypto-related crimes. Decline in crypto crime volume and weak KYC standards Per the report, Q3 2019 saw a notable reduction in total cryptocurrency crimes as compared with previous quarters, and thus the lowest quarterly thefts and scams in two …

In the aftermath of the recent BitMEX data leak, lawyer and general counsel at decentralized finance startup Compound Finance Jake Chervinsky raised the question of whether exposing the public to data risks that Know Your Client (KYC) requirements entail is worth it. It is about time we reconsider KYC In a tweet posted on Nov. 1, Chervinsky calls KYC requirements “are a double-edged sword.” He explained that KYC helps law enforcement to track illegal transactions but also exposes the public to hacking, phishing and identity theft. In the end, Chervinsky raised the question: “It's about time we reconsider if the …

After initially seeking to ban Bitcoin in 2013, Thailand has since developed a permissive regulatory apparatus for digital currencies and cryptocurrency fundraising methods. Thai financial services firm Seamico Securities recently announced that it has received approval from the country’s Securities and Investments Commission (SEC) to operate its subsidiary, SE Digital, as a regulated initial coin offering (ICO) portal. In doing so, SE Digital obtained permission to launch the first legitimate ICO in Thailand, with the company announcing that it hopes to raise between 2 billion and 3 billion Thai baht (between around $66 million and $99 million) through the token …

Kathryn Haun — a general partner at Andreesen Horowitz and the Justice Department's prosecutor for the infamous Silk Road case —- says that the fiat-dominated financial system is inept at tackling the very thing it purports to worry about when it comes to crypto. In the traditional financial sector today, “99.9% of all money laundering crimes go unprosecuted,” she told anchor Kyle Bass, during an interview for Real Vision Classics on Oct. 22. “We’re kidding ourselves” As someone whose career involved the takedown of one of the highest-profile criminal rackets in crypto industry history and established the first-ever crypto task …