EU Finalizes Anti-Money Laundering (AML) Rules on Crypto Activities
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EU Lawmaker Introduces AML Law on Crypto
In a tweet announcing the agreement, Ernest Urtasun, a member of the European Parliament, stated that they are "putting an end to the wild west of unregulated crypto, closing major loopholes in the European anti-money laundering rules."
The new rules aim to prevent money laundering, among other crimes, by requiring crypto-assets service providers to collect and store information identifying people involved in cryptocurrency transactions, as well as hand the information over to authorities that are conducting investigations. However, it will not track requirements on private, unhosted wallets that the EU Parliament initially planned in March.
However, the rules do not apply to peer-to-peer (P2P) transactions. This means upon implementing the Transfer of Funds Regulation (TOFR) rules, users uncomfortable with the data collection could migrate to P2P transactions. The rules will also regulate digital asset providers' relationships with CASPs in third-world countries, especially where these providers are unregulated and unlicensed.
According to a press release posted on the European Parliament's website, the regulation has "no minimum thresholds nor exemptions for low-value transfers" and applies to all transactions involving service providers, such as cryptocurrency exchanges, regulated under the EU.
Speaking on the rules, EU policy maker Ondřej Kovařík tweeted: