South Korean crypto exchanges that don't take extensive data collection and identity verification measures could soon be subject to heavy fines. According to an official announcement Wednesday, South Korea’s Financial Services Commission has come up with a revised proposal for the regulation of virtual assets service providers, or VASPs. The proposal introduces new VASP penalty standards as well as simplifying and integrating existing penalty rules for the industry. As part of the revised proposal, the FSC will be able to fine VASPs for failure to report and record suspicious transactions. Fines will vary depending on the severity and character of …

South Korean cryptocurrency exchange Bithumb is toughening its approach to Anti-Money Laundering enforcement with a series of new measures that include trading restrictions, stronger Know Your Customer checks, and specialized blockchain intelligence solutions. The popular exchange, which has an estimated average of 1 million daily users and a daily transaction volume worth 5–7 billion ($4.4–6.2 million), had a troubled 2020 beset by police investigations over allegations of fraud. After a series of reported negotiations with various firms for a potential acquisition, major gaming conglomerate Nexon denied it was planning to acquire Bithumb earlier this year. The Korean Herald today cites …

Major American digital asset custody and security company BitGo has acquired a New York Trust license from the New York State Department of Financial Services. According to an announcement, the new charter enables BitGo to provide custodial services for institutional clients in New York seeking to make large investments in crypto in compliance with local regulations. With the new license, BitGo will provide Know Your Customer and Anti-Money Laundering controls and offer offline cold storage of cryptographic keys in bank-grade vaults, BitGo said. BitGo CEO Mike Belshe said that the new trust charter from NYDFS will help the company serve …

The Financial Action Task Force says it is set to publish an update to its guidelines on cryptocurrencies and virtual asset service providers; a catch-all term including exchanges, wallet providers, and custody platforms, among others. This updated document will also be made available for public consultation from key stakeholders. According to a circular issued by the FATF on Thursday, the decision to update its guidance on VASPs was the result of the organization’s three-day plenary session. As part of its announcement, the intergovernmental that focuses on policies aimed at combating money laundering and terrorist financing revealed that the updated guidelines …

Image a scenario where you need different messengers to send different types of messages — for example, WhatsApp for text messages, Viber for audio, Telegram for video, etc. Rather inconvenient, right? But this is exactly what happens in finance: There is no way to send both digital fiat money and cryptocurrency from a bank account without extra steps. It’s not affecting the masses just yet, but after the issuing of national digital currencies, or central bank digital currencies, in the next few years over the world, the situation is about to become complicated. We need to start looking for a …

When capital markets opened for the first time this year on Jan. 4, 2021, the focus of the front page of the Financial Times was squarely aimed at Bitcoin (BTC) with the headline: “Bitcoin tops $34,000 as record-breaking rally resumes.” That Bitcoin is seeing institutional buy-in on a level unsurpassed in its history is certain, but what does this mean for the wider crypto space? How do we move from institutional adoption of Bitcoin or other crypto assets to connecting traditional finance markets with the decentralized finance and digital asset markets? If we can achieve this lofty goal, the inflows …

At first glance, Know Your Customer checks and Anti-Money Laundering measures can seem incredibly cumbersome for crypto enthusiasts. But look deeper, and the importance of such regulations becomes incredibly clear. EXMO, a crypto exchange based in the United Kingdom, says consumers aren’t often aware of what goes on behind the scenes at a trading platform — and argues that it’s in a trader’s best interests to select a company that follows rules to the letter. The company pointed to how 70% of virtual currency companies in Estonia, long seen as one of the most crypto-friendly countries in the European Union, …

Crypto exchange platform Bitstamp is reportedly demanding additional Know Your Customer compliance steps for Dutch-based users. According to a notice sent to Twitter user “Bitcoin Marcus,” — a Bitstamp user — the platform says account holders in the Netherlands have until the end of January to provide additional verification documents or risk their accounts being suspended. Today @Bitstamp has gone even further than the law requires. They now want me to: - show them how much I earn - show them where I got my #bitcoin from - proof of funds Seriously!! WTF!! And I can’t withdraw and leave so …

Fetch.ai, a project building a network of autonomous agents for blockchains, has announced a partnership with Yoti, a digital identity provider. Blockchains, and DeFi smart contracts in particular, often require manual interactions to trigger specific events. These could be contract calls, particular exchange transactions, publishing oracle data and many more. While these actions are often permissionless or done by the developers of the smart contract, there may be circumstances where nobody is able to perform these actions. This is where Fetch comes in with its network of autonomous agents, as David Minarsch, Fetch lead economist told Cointelegraph: “Fetch is built …

Digital asset exchange Bitstamp has reportedly banned Netherlands-based users from withdrawing crypto to external wallets without first verifying they own the receiving address. According to a letter authored by Bitstamp that was shared on Twitter by user “Bitcoin Marcus,” Bitstamp’s users in Holland must now submit third-party addresses alongside photographic evidence they own the wallet for whitelisting before withdrawals will be processed. “Whitelisting is a security feature which was already available at Bitstamp, but now it has become obligatory for all customers affected by the new regulation in the Netherlands,” the letter stated. Yes, this is real. People in the …

The crypto industry has boomed over the past 12 months. While 2019 began with a total market cap of $200 billion, the explosion in Bitcoin’s value resulted in this figure surging fivefold as 2020 began — and according to CoinMarketCap, the digital assets space was collectively worth $1 trillion at one point. However, as the crypto sector continues to grow and flourish, so too does crypto-related crime. Virtual assets worth $3.8 billion were lost to fraud in 2019. This figure rose to almost $4.9 billion in 2020. Fraud, money laundering and the financing of terrorism are not issues that are …

BitMEX has announced the completion of its user verification program, becoming one of the largest crypto trading platforms with a fully certified customer base. As part of the process to verify its entire use base, BitMEX says open positions held by unverified accounts have been closed. Back in Aug. 2020, the platform revealed plans to undertake a comprehensive user identity verification exercise. The move came amid increasing regulatory scrutiny over the platform's notoriously lax Know Your Customer, or KYC, policies. As previously reported by Cointelegraph, the United States Commodity Futures Trading Commission charged BitMEX for illegally operating a derivatives trading …