ChainCatcher news, the crypto anti-money laundering company Notabene has completed a $14.5 million Series B funding round, led by DRW Venture Capital, with participation from Apollo, Nextblock, ParaFi Capital, Wintermute, CMT Digital, F-Prime, Green Visor Capital, Illuminate Financial, Jump Capital, Signature Ventures, and Y Combinator.Notabene is a startup that helps cryptocurrency trading companies comply with anti-money laundering (AML) regulations. Notabene aims to become the SWIFT for crypto trading, and its network effects are continuously strengthening, with 165 companies using the platform, including some virtual asset service providers (VASP) such as Copper, OKX, and Ramp.

ChainCatcher news, the Federal Financial Monitoring Service of the Russian Federation (Rosfinmonitoring) emphasized that even if the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) decides to blacklist Russia, its anti-money laundering system will continue to operate effectively. Previous assessments mentioned issues related to virtual currency regulation, but Rosfinmonitoring insists that these issues have been resolved.According to TASS, the regulatory agency stated: "The Russian Federation has improved its ratings on three FATF recommendations, with only one being downgraded to 'partially compliant' due to insufficient legislative regulation in the field of virtual currency circulation."However, Rosfinmonitoring pointed out that since these assessments, Russia has passed two federal laws to strengthen its digital currency regulatory framework. The agency added: "Since then, the Russian Federation has passed two federal laws regulating the circulation of digital currencies."It is reported that the FATF is an intergovernmental organization that sets global standards for anti-money laundering and combating the financing of terrorism. Whether Russia will be blacklisted will be discussed at the FATF plenary meeting from October 21 to 25.

ChainCatcher news, according to Decrypt, before the European Union introduces a new round of laws and regulations to combat money laundering and terrorist financing, Irish Finance Minister Jack Chambers will draft "emergency" legislation to update the country's cryptocurrency regulations. However, the minister did not explicitly indicate what these rules would include, nor did he specify when they would take effect. Chambers was appointed to the position in June 2024, having had little experience as a cryptocurrency regulator.It is reported that the EU's Anti-Money Laundering and Counter-Terrorism Financing Act will take effect on December 30, 2024, granting EU member states' Financial Intelligence Units (FIUs) greater investigative powers and the ability to suspend transactions.

ChainCatcher news, according to DL News, the UK's Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) has not approved any cryptocurrency company registration applications for six consecutive months, putting the country's vision of becoming a global hub for crypto assets technology on hold. FCA data shows that 34 applications were received in the past 12 months, with only 4 approved, the most recent of which was in February this year.The UK's Financial Conduct Authority stated that most crypto companies failed to meet its anti-money laundering standards, emphasizing that companies must be "appropriate and competent" and have systems in place to identify and prevent the flow of criminal funds. However, industry lobbyists complain that the FCA's rules are overly cumbersome and confusing, particularly regarding consumer marketing regulations. Nevertheless, the FCA is working with businesses to help them meet compliance requirements. Against this backdrop of tightening regulation, several companies, including Binance and PayPal, have suspended their crypto services in the UK.

ChainCatcher news, according to CryptoNews, Kazakhstan's anti-money laundering agency has reported that it has blocked a total of 75.4 million dollars in illegal cryptocurrency transactions and confirmed 18 criminal cases related to illegal cryptocurrency trading and mining. In 2024, Kazakhstan's courts have made six rulings on such cases and confiscated assets worth a total of 2.51 million dollars.In addition, the country strictly regulates cryptocurrency exchanges and mining activities, with unlicensed cryptocurrency exchanges and mining equipment that have not completed the licensing process facing legal sanctions.

ChainCatcher news, according to The Block, U.S. Senator Roger Marshall has withdrawn his support for the anti-money laundering bill proposed by Elizabeth Warren. This move comes amid significant pressure from the crypto industry and the backdrop of Donald Trump's support for crypto.Marshall became the first co-sponsor to withdraw support this week, although the bill still has the backing of 18 other senators. The bill aims to strengthen the U.S. anti-money laundering regulations for digital assets, requiring digital asset service providers, miners, and validators to adhere to stricter customer identification and anti-money laundering responsibilities. The crypto industry has strongly opposed this bill, arguing that it would negatively impact decentralized finance and could stifle innovation in the industry. The Chief Policy Officer of the Digital Chamber stated that the bill is essentially a "backdoor ban" on blockchain technology.

ChainCatcher news reports that Taiwan's "Legislative Yuan" yesterday passed the amendments to the Money Laundering Prevention Act in the third reading, officially bringing businesses or individuals providing virtual asset services and third-party payment services under regulatory control. In the future, these service providers must complete money laundering prevention and service capacity registration or login, otherwise they will face a maximum of 2 years of imprisonment or a fine of up to 5 million New Taiwan Dollars.This amendment also revised the penalties for general money laundering offenses. The third reading stipulates that anyone involved in the acts listed in Article 2 of the Money Laundering Prevention Act will be sentenced to imprisonment for not less than 3 years and not more than 10 years, and fined up to 100 million New Taiwan Dollars. If the value of the laundered property or benefits does not reach 100 million, the offender will face imprisonment for not less than 6 months and not more than 5 years, and a fine of up to 50 million New Taiwan Dollars. Attempted offenses are also punishable.

ChainCatcher news, according to News.bitcoin, based on data from the Financial Action Task Force (FATF), 97 out of 130 jurisdictions "partially or not at all" comply with anti-money laundering recommendations for the virtual asset sector. 88 jurisdictions (60%) have decided to allow virtual asset service providers (VASP), while 14% (20 jurisdictions) explicitly prohibit them. The FATF claims that stablecoins and privacy-enhanced cryptocurrencies are increasingly being used by terrorist organizations and "rogue states."

ChainCatcher news, according to an official statement from the U.S. Department of Justice, cryptocurrency exchange and derivatives trading platform BitMEX admitted on Wednesday to violating the Bank Secrecy Act, stating that BitMEX willfully failed to establish, implement, and maintain adequate anti-money laundering programs. The law carries a maximum penalty of five years in prison and fines, and the case has been assigned to U.S. District Judge John G. Koeltl.U.S. Attorney Damian Williams stated, "As acknowledged by BitMEX's founder and long-time employee in federal court in 2022, the company operated in the U.S. without any meaningful anti-money laundering program as required by federal law. Therefore, BitMEX became a tool for large-scale money laundering and sanctions evasion schemes, posing a serious threat to the integrity of the financial system."

ChainCatcher news, Paxful co-founder and former Chief Technology Officer Artur Schaback pleaded guilty on Monday to failing to maintain an effective anti-money laundering (AML) program at the cryptocurrency exchange, and now faces up to five years in prison.On July 8, the U.S. Department of Justice announced that Schaback is scheduled to be sentenced on November 4, and he will resign from the Paxful board.A plea agreement submitted the same day in a California federal court shows that government prosecutors agreed to impose a $5 million fine on Schaback, which he will pay in three installments: $1 million on the day of the plea, $3 million on the day of sentencing, and the final $1 million to be paid within the next two years.

ChainCatcher news, OKX CEO Star stated on social media: "It is a common compliance control practice for OKX to inquire about the source of funds for deposits or withdrawals that trigger suspicious transaction monitoring, which is an obligation that financial institutions must fulfill under anti-money laundering laws and regulations in countries around the world."

ChainCatcher news, according to Caixin reports, Singapore is strengthening its scrutiny of family offices and hedge funds due to a major money laundering case involving 3 billion yuan that exposed regulatory loopholes, and is cleaning up inactive family offices.Ye Hongyu, senior partner at Fumei United Family Office, confirmed that the new regulations require family offices to invest at least 10% of their total assets under management or 10 million Singapore dollars (approximately 7.39 million USD) in local investments, including unlisted companies, private equity, and qualified debt securities.Industry insiders believe this may lead some wealthy Chinese individuals to turn to Hong Kong.

ChainCatcher news, according to Cointelegraph, Singapore's updated national risk assessment for anti-money laundering highlights significant risks in the field of anti-money laundering, particularly in the financial sector, where digital payment token (DPT) service providers pose greater vulnerabilities. The 126-page report identifies new risk areas not included in the previous report released in 2014, including virtual asset service providers as well as gemstone and precious metal trading.

ChainCatcher news, Fox reporter Eleanor Terrett posted on the X platform stating that SEC Chairman Gary Gensler mentioned that due to the permissionless nature of blockchain, DeFi faces challenges in enforcing anti-money laundering laws.

ChainCatcher News, the U.S. Department of the Treasury has released the 2024 National Strategy for Combating Terrorist and Other Illicit Financing, outlining priorities for combating illicit financing. The Treasury emphasized its ongoing work surrounding cryptocurrencies, including sanctions against certain trading platforms and groups such as Bitzlato and Lazarus, as well as a settlement with Binance.The four priorities of the U.S. Department of the Treasury are to close gaps in anti-money laundering regulations, support a more effective and risk-based framework, enhance the efficiency of law enforcement agencies, and leverage technological innovation. Updating the existing cryptocurrency regulatory framework will support these priorities.