The Task Force formed to create anti-money laundering standards during the July G-20 meeting has reported covering sufficient ground. The group believes they will most likely deliver an agreeable set of standards by the time the FATF reconvenes in October to agree on AML standards that include cryptocurrencies.
AML Taskforce Ready with a Roadmap
The president of the global Anti-Money Laundering Taskforce told the Financial Times, on September 21, 2018, that he was optimistic the group would be ready with a draft proposal on standards applicable to virtual currencies. The president of the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) Marshall Billingslea emphasized the importance of having a “consensus across nations” saying:
“It is essential that we establish a global set of standards that are applied in a uniform manner […] AML standards and rules relating to digital assets and virtual currencies are very much a patchwork quilt or spotty process, creating significant vulnerabilities for both national and international financial systems.”
The Financial Action Task Force was formed during the 1989 G7 summit in Paris to address the emerging money laundering debacle. Since its inception, the FATF’s assignment includes both the conventional fiat currencies and the emerging digital currency-based money laundering issues besides terrorism financing. The group is made of 37 members that include the United States, Japan, South Africa, and the EU members.
Financial Ministers and Central Bank representatives attending the Argentina G-20 meeting in July 2018 implored the FATF to highlight AML standards regarding digital currencies by October 2018. The group had earlier discussed the matter during the March 2018 chapter where FATF was admonished to use the existing AML standards to the emerging cryptocurrency economy. The president of the task force is confident they will have reached a consensus on global standards by October to seal the loopholes in global AML laws.
Countries Jump on the Crypto Bandwagon
Every country with a cryptocurrency community is working within its own internal framework (many others have nothing) creating a patchwork quilt that has left transnational financial systems exposed.
The expected agreement in October requires that FATF will have assessed the existing AML standards and updated them to accommodate emerging digital currencies. The FATF is also likely to review the different methods that will be used to judge and implement AML regulations in participating countries and give a roadmap on implementing the new standards. Billingslea stated:
“Despite the risks, digital assets also present a great opportunity and as far as regulation goes, you can’t tilt too far in one direction or another since blockchain will continue to evolve.”
