EU Banking Watchdog Cracks Down on Crypto Firms with AML Measures

In a move to combat financial crime, the European Banking Authority (EBA) has extended its anti-money laundering measures to cover crypto firms operating in the European Union. The EBA’s new guidance, which harmonizes the approach that crypto asset service providers (CASP) should adopt, will take effect on December 30. The EBA stated that CASPs need to be aware of the risks associated with crypto-assets and implement effective measures to mitigate them. The guidelines also include guidance for credit and financial institutions that have CASPs as customers or are exposed to crypto assets. Compliance with the guidelines must be reported within two months of their official translation into EU languages. The move comes after the EU finalized legislation on the transfer of funds using digital assets and published guidelines on risk-based supervision of CASPs, as recommended by the Financial Action Task Force (FATF).