AML
South Korea has revised its anti-money‑laundering rules to capture small crypto transfers, expanding reporting duties, banning violators from owning or operating VASPs, and allowing preemptive asset freezes to curb illicit flows.
Europe will appoint Giuseppe Lopez as head of Europol’s financial crime unit, signaling a stepped-up focus on anti-money-laundering enforcement that includes crypto. The move is expected to sharpen cross-border investigations and coordination with industry and analytics providers.
Bithumb will close its USDT market and end a shared order book with Australia’s Stellar Exchange after just two months as regulators scrutinize its anti–money laundering controls. The move follows an ongoing probe by South Korean authorities.
A $1 billion lawsuit accuses Binance and CEO Changpeng Zhao of financing the October 7 attack, alleging the exchange ignored warning signs for years and allowed suspicious accounts to operate. The filing intensifies scrutiny on exchange controls and who ultimately owned those accounts.
South Korea is preparing sanctions against major crypto exchanges after a year-long Financial Intelligence Unit review found anti-money laundering shortcomings. The move signals tougher enforcement that could raise compliance costs and disrupt services.
Brazil's government and central bank have unveiled proposals to curb illicit use of Bitcoin and stablecoins by tightening KYC, reporting and oversight requirements. The measures aim to disrupt criminal activity but could raise compliance costs for exchanges, P2P platforms and stablecoin issuers.
South Korean regulators fined Dunamu, operator of the Upbit exchange, 35.2 billion won (about US$24 million) for breaches of anti-money laundering and customer verification rules. The penalty highlights growing enforcement pressure on crypto exchanges and raises questions about compliance across the industry.
Brazil’s central bank issued new rules on Nov 10, 2025, extending anti-money‑laundering and counter‑terrorism financing standards to virtual‑asset service providers. The move raises compliance costs and could reshape local exchange activity and DeFi access.
Cryptomus, operated by Xeltox Enterprises Ltd., has been fined C$176.96 million by Canada's FINTRAC for failing to report thousands of large transactions linked to fraud and illicit activities, marking one of the most significant AML enforcement actions in the country.
Recent developments in US cryptocurrency regulation include FinCEN's proposal to label crypto mixer transactions as primary money laundering concerns, CFTC's initiatives to regulate digital asset markets and tackle fraud, and the Federal Reserve's research on tokenization and its financial impacts.