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The Swiss financial regulator has published its updated anti-money laundering (AML) regulation, noting that it extends its coverage to include blockchain trading platforms. It also clarified certain reporting and identification requirements applicable to crypto transactions.
Following consultations that began earlier this year, the Swiss Financial Supervisory Authority (FINMA) has partially revised its Anti-Money Laundering Ordinance (AMLO), which clarifies the application of a maximum limit for unidentified crypto exchange transactions.
In a press release on Thursday, the regulator said the regulation, which takes effect on January 1, 2023, now reflects the latest changes to Switzerland’s anti-money laundering law and the Federal Council’s anti-money laundering regulation.
FINMA noted that the feedback collected confirmed its position that the mandatory identity verification of beneficial owners of funds, as well as the periodic checks establishing that client data is up-to-date, do not need to be detailed at statutory level.
At the same time, the financial watchdog emphasized that a provision obliging intermediaries to regulate the procedures for updating and checking customer registers through an internal directive will remain in place.
The authority also pointed out that the regulation extends to distributed ledger trading facilities and further disclosed that it received many comments regarding the reporting threshold for transactions involving virtual currencies. In the announcement, FINMA stated:
In light of the risk and recent cases of abuse, FINMA stands by the rule that technical measures are necessary to prevent the threshold of CHF 1,000 being exceeded for linked transactions within 30 days (and not just per day).
However, the regulatory body noted that this duty only applies to exchange transactions of crypto-assets for cash or other anonymous means of payment.
According to the so-called ‘travel rule’, which was enforced by Switzerland on January 1, 2020, crypto asset service providers must share identifiable customer data when transferring cryptocurrency, whose fiat value exceeds the said threshold and prove ownership of non-custodial wallets.
Citing an increased risk of money laundering, in February of the same year FINMA lowered the threshold that triggered the reporting obligations through another amendment of AMLO to 1,000 Swiss francs (around $980 at the time of writing), from the previous 5,000 francs.
Do you think Swiss authorities will further tighten the reporting requirements for crypto transactions in the future? Share your expectations in the comments section below.
Image credit: Shutterstock, Pixabay, Wiki Commons, Andreas Meier
