The US Treasury Department’s Financial Crimes
Enforcement Network (FinCEN) has designated cryptocurrency mixers as a significant
hub for money laundering activities. This action aims to increase scrutiny of
crypto transactions due to the increasing use of digital assets in money
laundering and terrorist financing.
FinCEN has raised issues related to cryptocurrency mixing,
categorizing it as a “primary money laundering concern.” This
decision was influenced by recent events, including the Hamas’ attack on Israel,
which raised suspicions about the increasing use of convertible virtual
currencies in illicit activities.
As a response, FinCEN has proposed imposing
record-keeping and reporting requirements on domestic financial institutions
and agencies for transactions involving crypto mixers. These platforms are a
haven for digital asset holders seeking to conceal their cryptocurrency
transactions.
Andrea Gacki, the Director at FinCEN, said:
“CVC mixing offers a critical service that allows players in the
ransomware ecosystem, rogue state actors, and other criminals to fund their unlawful
activities and obfuscate the flow of ill-gotten gains.”
“This is FinCEN’s first-ever use of the Section
311 authority to target a class of transactions of primary money laundering
concern, and, just as with our efforts in the traditional financial system,
Treasury will work to identify and root out the illicit use and abuse of the
CVC ecosystem.”
Cryptocurrency Mixers Facing Regulatory Scrutiny
Last year, the US imposed sanctions on Tornado Cash,
a cryptocurrency mixing service at the center of controversy over alleged money
laundering activities. This move by the US Department of the Treasury’s Office
of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) sparked a discussion on the impact of these sanctions
and the challenges they pose to decentralized technologies.
According to OFAC, as of last year, over $7 billion
has been laundered using Tornado Cash since 2019. These sanctions effectively
prohibited US crypto investors from utilizing Tornado Cash, as 38 Ethereum
addresses and 6 USDC addresses had reportedly been added to OFAC’s Specially
Designated Nationals list.
It’s worth noting that FinCEN had previously taken
steps to restrict US residents’ use of Tornado Cash in August 2022. This action
led to a legal challenge by individuals supported by crypto exchange Coinbase,
ultimately ruled in favor of the Treasury Department in August 2023.
The US Treasury Department’s Financial Crimes
Enforcement Network (FinCEN) has designated cryptocurrency mixers as a significant
hub for money laundering activities. This action aims to increase scrutiny of
crypto transactions due to the increasing use of digital assets in money
laundering and terrorist financing.
FinCEN has raised issues related to cryptocurrency mixing,
categorizing it as a “primary money laundering concern.” This
decision was influenced by recent events, including the Hamas’ attack on Israel,
which raised suspicions about the increasing use of convertible virtual
currencies in illicit activities.
As a response, FinCEN has proposed imposing
record-keeping and reporting requirements on domestic financial institutions
and agencies for transactions involving crypto mixers. These platforms are a
haven for digital asset holders seeking to conceal their cryptocurrency
transactions.
Andrea Gacki, the Director at FinCEN, said:
“CVC mixing offers a critical service that allows players in the
ransomware ecosystem, rogue state actors, and other criminals to fund their unlawful
activities and obfuscate the flow of ill-gotten gains.”
“This is FinCEN’s first-ever use of the Section
311 authority to target a class of transactions of primary money laundering
concern, and, just as with our efforts in the traditional financial system,
Treasury will work to identify and root out the illicit use and abuse of the
CVC ecosystem.”
Cryptocurrency Mixers Facing Regulatory Scrutiny
Last year, the US imposed sanctions on Tornado Cash,
a cryptocurrency mixing service at the center of controversy over alleged money
laundering activities. This move by the US Department of the Treasury’s Office
of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) sparked a discussion on the impact of these sanctions
and the challenges they pose to decentralized technologies.
According to OFAC, as of last year, over $7 billion
has been laundered using Tornado Cash since 2019. These sanctions effectively
prohibited US crypto investors from utilizing Tornado Cash, as 38 Ethereum
addresses and 6 USDC addresses had reportedly been added to OFAC’s Specially
Designated Nationals list.
It’s worth noting that FinCEN had previously taken
steps to restrict US residents’ use of Tornado Cash in August 2022. This action
led to a legal challenge by individuals supported by crypto exchange Coinbase,
ultimately ruled in favor of the Treasury Department in August 2023.
