The European Banking Authority (EBA) has announced the expansion of travel rules and guidelines for crypto service providers, enhancing AML/CFT measures.
Regulation (EU) 2023/1113 (Travel Rule Guidelines) will apply to crypto exchanges that are located in the European Union (EU) as of December 30. This regulation requires submitting information regarding the transfers of funds and crypto assets.
Consequently, the EU’s Anti-Money Laundering/Countering the Financing of Terrorism (AML/CFT) regime will apply to crypto-asset service providers (CASPs), as defined in MiCAR.
EU travel regulations influence crypto exchanges
Payment service providers (PSPs), intermediary PSPs, CASPs, and intermediary CASPs will be granted a two-month buffer period to confirm compliance with the new regulations upon implementing the regulation.
“The deadline for competent authorities to report whether they comply with the Guidelines will be two months after the publication of the translations.”
Some general provisions include collecting users’ information for the transmission of funds or crypto-assets, identifying transactions that appear to be linked, and determining whether the transaction is related to the purchase of services.
Furthermore, intermediaries and crypto service providers must disclose their policies regarding cross-border transfers and multi-intermediation.
Aiming for long-term advantageous outcomes
The EBA recognized the financial duress that crypto exchanges and service providers will experience due to complying with the EU Travel Rules Guidelines. Nevertheless, the regulatory agency anticipates a cumulative advantage in the long term.
“Overall, the benefits from these Guidelines are expected to outweigh potential costs, and these Guidelines are expected to contribute to making the fight against ML/TF more effective.”
Crypto exchanges and service providers currently subject to the EU’s Anti-Money Laundering Directive (AMLD) or a domestic AML/CFT regime “will continue to be subject to the applicable AML/CFT requirements.”
Crypto protocols are adopting a proactive stance toward compliance as European governments intensify their control over crypto exchange activities.
The Cardano Foundation, in collaboration with the Crypto Carbon Ratings Institute (CCRI), has published sustainability indicators for the Cardano network that are under the upcoming Markets in Crypto-Assets (MiCA) regulation in the European Union.
The report emphasizes that Cardano operates on a consensus protocol that is more energy-efficient and consumes substantially less electricity than proof-of-work protocols.
It also offers the total annualized electricity consumption and ecological footprint of the Cardano network, as well as the marginal power demand per transaction per second, among other critical metrics.
