Australia Tightens Crypto Regulation With 45 Firms Removed

The Australian regulator of financial intelligence released a statement on September 7, saying that it had suspended, cancelled or denied renewal for 45 crypto and remittance registrations in the last one year. According to the Australian Transaction Reports and Analysis Centre, the AUSTRAC registrations are on its register. However, the organisation could not identify all 45 businesses and did not state whether the businesses were virtual asset service providers or remittance organisations. According to their statement, AUSTRAC aimed at businesses that were dormant, insolvent, or incapable of starting or continuing operations.

GetCoins Registration Revoked After Scam-Related Complaints

AUSTRAC said that the other cases were due to inaccurate registration, failure to notify changes in the material information, or a higher risk of money laundering and terrorism financing activities. According to Brendan Thomas, CEO of AUSTRAC, the businesses whose registrations have been revoked cannot offer any service anymore. The regulator referred individuals connected with some firms to law enforcement agencies in Australia and abroad.

This is an example of an administrative or supervisory action rather than a determination of criminal behavior by all 45 firms. The conditions cited by AUSTRAC include non-activity, insolvency, and even alleged exposure to financial crime. AUSTRAC discovered that BA Digital Ventures, operating as GetCoins, was among those entities affected by the sweep exercise. According to the agency's public register, the cancellation of its virtual asset service provider registration took place on June 4.

One such company noted by AUSTRAC was BA Digital Ventures, trading under the name of GetCoins. Its VASP registration was revoked on June 4, as per the records maintained on the AUSTRAC public register. The regulator coordinated with the National Anti-Scam Centre of Australia following complaints from customers. AUSTRAC requested details on the operations of GetCoins to find out whether the company can control its money laundering risk. “This VASP was allegedly exploited by organised cryptocurrency investment scams,” AUSTRAC said. 

Last week, the financial regulatory body also issued its last warning on September 2 to crypto companies depending on temporary enforcement relief. These businesses will need to apply for the necessary licence by September 30 in order to comply with current financial services regulations. The Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) said that businesses operating without being licensed from October 1 would be liable to legal consequences.