There has been a long-standing debate concerning the use cases of cryptocurrency by criminal elements and extremists like ISIS. A recent report from Europol pointed out how terrorist groups have attempted to (and ultimately failed at) using cryptocurrencies to raise cash.
CryptoGlobe reported how Yaya Fanuise of the Foundation for Defense of Democracies Center on Sanctions and Illicit Finance essentially told the House Financial Services the same thing, noting how “cold hard cash is still king” when it comes to financing.
Now, the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) says they are ready to agree to a new series of anti-money laundering standards in October that would apply to cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin, ones that would make it much harder for criminal or extremist elements to utilize cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin.
Closing Up Loopholes
According to FATF President Marshall Billingslea, the group had made a lot of progress on coming to some sort of a consensus on standards after the G20 asked to make the issue an urgent one.
Billingslea thinks current anti-money laundering (and affiliated) standards are still a “patchwork quilt or spotty process” contributing towards “significant vulnerabilities” for financial systems across the world.
Now, Billingslea says the FATF will convene in October to talk about existing standards and discuss how they should be modified to rope in virtual assets. Then the agency will revise the methodology concerning how these types of standards are implemented.
Their overall goal is to create a worldwide set of standards “that are applied in a uniform manner.”
Still Keeping An Open Mind
Despite calls from some to task an agency like Europol with crafting a centralized system to keep track of digital wallets linked to nefarious activities, Billingslea maintains cryptocurrencies are still “a great opportunity.”
He thinks regulation should not go too far in one direction since blockchain technology “will continue to evolve.”
