On December 13, 2023, CoinList Markets LLC (“CoinList”) agreed to pay $1,207,830 pursuant to a settlement agreement with the Office of Foreign Assets Controls (“OFAC”) in connection with allegations that the San Francisco...more
On November 21, 2023, the U.S. Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) announced its largest settlement in history with the virtual currency exchange Binance. This almost-billion dollar settlement is a part of a larger...more
11/27/2023
/ Anti-Money Laundering ,
CFTC ,
Civil Monetary Penalty ,
Compliance ,
Crypto Exchanges ,
Cryptocurrency ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Economic Sanctions ,
Enforcement Actions ,
FinCEN ,
Money Laundering ,
Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) ,
Sanction Violations ,
Settlement ,
Virtual Currency
On Monday, October 24, 2022, the Department of Justice (DOJ) announced charges against two alleged Chinese intelligence officers for bribing and stealing documents to obstruct the criminal investigation of, reportedly, Huawei...more
On September 16, the United States Department of Justice (“DOJ”) released a report on the Role of Law Enforcement in Detecting, Investigating, and Prosecuting Criminal Activity Related to Digital Assets pursuant to President...more
On May 6, the US Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) designated a cryptocurrency mixer, Blender.io, as a Specially Designated National (SDN). That sanction follows a series of enforcements and...more
The recent comprehensive economic sanctions by the U.S. and other nations against Russia has propelled the crypto community onto the geo-political stage in a major way. As with other forms of payment and methods of money...more
On February 4, the Department of the Treasury published a study on the facilitation of money laundering and terrorist financing through the art trade. Among other considerations, the report discussed the risks of financial...more
2/28/2022
/ Anti-Money Laundering ,
BSA/AML ,
Cryptocurrency ,
Financial Crimes ,
Financial Institutions ,
Financial Transactions ,
FinCEN ,
Money Laundering ,
Non-Fungible Tokens (NFTs) ,
Terrorist Financing ,
U.S. Treasury
The Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) took action last Monday, November 8, 2021, and sanctioned a Latvia-based exchange, Chatex, its associated support network, and two ransomware operators for...more
11/17/2021
/ Compliance ,
Cryptocurrency ,
Cyber Crimes ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Financial Transactions ,
Non-Fungible Tokens (NFTs) ,
Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) ,
Ransomware ,
Sanctions ,
SDN List ,
U.S. Treasury
Last Friday, the Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) published more targeted guidance for digital asset companies related to compliance with sanctions and best practices for mitigating risks. This guide comes on the heels...more
10/22/2021
/ Compliance ,
Cryptocurrency ,
Data Management ,
Digital Currency ,
Economic Sanctions ,
Financial Institutions ,
Financial Services Industry ,
Geolocation ,
IP Addresses ,
New Guidance ,
Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) ,
Ransomware ,
Regulatory Oversight ,
Risk Management ,
Strict Liability ,
Virtual Currency
A lot of us in the sanctions compliance world were wondering whether and when OFAC would issue official guidance on its application of sanctions in the digital currency world. On March 18, OFAC issued five FAQs related to...more
4/13/2018
/ Blocked Person ,
Cryptocurrency ,
Digital Currency ,
Economic Sanctions ,
Financial Instruments ,
Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) ,
Popular ,
Regulatory Requirements ,
SDN List ,
Token Sales ,
Virtual Currency
Russian President Vladmir Putin has directed his government to develop a state-backed cryptocurrency, according to a Financial Times report published on January 2nd. A Putin advisor says that the “Crypto-rouble” could be used...more
1/11/2018
/ Anonymity ,
Anti-Money Laundering ,
Bitcoin ,
Blockchain ,
Criminal Investigations ,
Cross-Border Transactions ,
Cryptocurrency ,
Digital Currency ,
Economic Sanctions ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Financial Institutions ,
Russia ,
Vladimir Putin