Why gold is the bright stuff for would-be sanctions busters

Reported by: Jonathan Guthrie Nations challenged by the so-called “tyranny of the dollar” are quietly buying gold to replace foreign currency in reserves or for other purposes. Russia springs to mind: most of its government institutions, banks and bigwigs are covered by sanctions. China is also subject to a growing raft of trade curbs amid […]

Treasury Officials Warn Banks Over Sanctions Compliance Overkill

Reported by: Daniel Flatley Brian Nelson, the Treasury undersecretary for terrorism and financial intelligence, will go to Seattle, San Francisco and San Diego this month to warn banks against overcompliance such as cutting people off from services over fears of running afoul of sanctions. His push highlights a challenge the US faces with sanctions: Successive administrations have […]

U.S. subpoenas hedge funds in probe of crypto exchange Binance

Reported by: Douglas MacMillan and Tory Newmyer Federal prosecutors are examining American hedge funds’ dealings with cryptocurrency exchange Binance as part of a long-running investigation into potential violations of money-laundering rules at one of the world’s leading crypto companies. In subpoenas sent in recent months, the U.S. attorney’s office for the Western District of Washington […]

U.S. securities regulator probes FTX investors’ due diligence -sources

Reported by: Chris Prentice The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) is seeking details about FTX investors’ due diligence, according to two sources familiar with the inquiry, as fallout from the crypto firm’s collapse spreads. The SEC has so far brought charges against three of FTX’s top executives, accusing them defrauding investors in the crypto trading platform […]

Coinbase to pay $100 million over lax money laundering safeguards

Reported by: Tory Newmyer Coinbase, the largest U.S.-based cryptocurrency trading exchange, will pay a $50 million fine to settle allegations from New York regulators that it broke the law by failing to adequately guard against money laundering on its platform. The company will spend an additional $50 million over the next two years beefing up […]

IRS Sees Crypto Companies as Potential Crime-Fighting Partners

Reported by: Richard Vanderford “Cryptocurrency is here to stay,” a top Internal Revenue Service law enforcer said, and the tax-collection agency wants to partner with the industry to fight financial crime.  The IRS Criminal Investigation division is bringing on hundreds of new agents a year, including many who will be directed to work on digital […]