According to recent media reports, cryptocurrency assets now fall under strict anti-money laundering rules of Israel. The country is tightening its grip around unlawful crypto activities in the region.
The report published by The Jerusalem Post highlights that Israel’s Authority for Combating Terror Financing and Money Laundering has increased its efforts to eliminate the use of digital assets in money laundering.
In addition to cryptocurrency assets like Bitcoin and Ethereum, the authority will monitor Fintech and other financial products to make the innovative digital financial tools secure for transactions. Shlomit Wegman, the Director of the Authority, believes that the new rules will provide security to the legal users of Cryptocurrencies .
“The application of the regulations constitutes real progress for the Israeli economy, the Fintech industry, and for improving financial competition to provide the public better services. The new regulations are designed to step into that space to establish order and clear standards,” Wegman said.
The regulations are based on the standards established by the Financial Action Task Force (FATF). Most of the countries around the world have started applying the new FATF rules for digital transactions in their respective regions.
Global Cryptocurrency Regulations
The crypto market saw substantial growth in 2021 as the overall market capitalization jumped by more than 250% within the first 10 months. With rising popularity, the use of digital assets in illegal financial transactions has also increased. To counter that, many European and Asian countries have introduced strict KYC and AML rules for the detection and prevention of cryptocurrencies in illegal activities.
In terms of adoption, Israel is one of the fastest-growing crypto hubs in the world. Due to the rising popularity of digital assets in the region, the authorities increased their efforts to make Israel’s crypto ecosystem secure. In December 2020, the Israeli Tax Authority reportedly sent notices to residents asking them to disclose their crypto holdings.
