EU Lawmakers to Vote on Limited Ban on Self-Hosted Crypto Payments – According to documents that were seen, large crypto asset transactions that originate from anonymous self-hosted wallets would be prohibited under the proposed legislation that is scheduled to be voted on by lawmakers on March 28.
After months of wrangling over how to prevent cryptocurrencies, non-fungible tokens (NFTs), and the metaverse from being used for financial crime, the European Parliament’s Economics and Civil Liberties Committees are set to vote on new anti-money laundering (AML) plans on Tuesday. This comes after the committees argued over how to stop cryptocurrencies being used for financial crime.
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According to the present plan, it would be illegal for dealers to send or accept anonymous cryptocurrency transfers that are greater than one thousand euros ($1,080). If either the customer’s identity or the involvement of a regulated cryptocurrency provider can be established, then the transaction will be permitted.
The initial draft of the law was even harsher, but the text was liberalized at a March 22 internal meeting. Transfers of crypto currency between private individuals, such as substantial payments made between two friends, would still be permitted.
In addition, the Act makes it illegal for companies to receive cash payments of more than 7,000 euros and establishes a new EU anti-money laundering body called the AMLA. In order for the measures to be codified into law, they will need to receive approval from both the European Union Parliament and the European Council, which is composed of representatives from each of the union’s member states.
The Council attempted to bring privacy-enhancing cryptocurrencies like zcash, monero, and dash on the same level as anonymous financial instruments like bearer shares last year when it proposed banning banks and cryptocurrency providers from trading in such cryptocurrencies.
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Although the draft proposed by the parliament does not appear to go quite that far, it does prohibit the use of anonymous cryptocurrency accounts and considers the use of privacy coins, mixers, and tumblers as additional factors to take into account when determining the potential for money laundering.
It is planned that EU crypto providers will be prohibited from having correspondent relationships with any overseas providers who are not registered or licensed anywhere. This is in accordance with the goals of the EU parliament. The proposals also bring NFT platforms under the scope of money laundering rules, and decentralized autonomous organizations (DAOs) to the extent they are controlled by an identified person.
