For now, there are no precise regulations governing the international crypto market. As a result, more and more crypto exchanges are running into problems. Worse still, some countries (if not all countries around the world) are struggling to combat virtual asset crimes. To address this problem, the Secretary General of Interpol has made an important announcement: governments will no longer fight crimes involving cryptocurrency alone.
Fight against crypto crimes: a dedicated team in Singapore
The information was relayed by Standard Business, an Indian news agency, following a press conference held by Jürgen Stock on October 17. The current Secretary General of Interpol thus plans to create a special division to strengthen the fight against crypto crimes.
More explicitly, this special unit will have the main mission of helping and supporting governments. In particular, it could help law enforcement investigate crimes involving virtual assets or crypto.
Upstream, this approach allows Interpol to strengthen its skills in cryptography. The establishment of this special division could even help it to consolidate its knowledge of the cryptosphere.
To justify his decision, Jürgen Stock also declared: “The absence of a legal framework for crypto like Bitcoin and Ether poses major challenges for law enforcement”. “Very often agencies are not properly trained and properly equipped,” he adds. A statement greatly supported by Praveen Sinha, special director of the Indian Central Bureau of Investigations. “The only answer is international cooperation, coordination, trust and real-time information sharing,” he said.
A not so risky decision!
For some, Interpol’s announcement follows the publication of a “red notice” in September. This arrest warrant is for all law enforcement agencies worldwide. Concretely, he demands the arrest of Do Kwon, co-founder of the Terraform Labs blockchain. As a reminder, the publication of this red notice led to the collapse of Terra in May 2022.
Always in this approach to fight against crypto crimes, Interpol deploys all the necessary resources to be as effective as possible. In 2020, for example, it partnered with Trend Micro and S2W Lab. The first develops security solutions against cryptojacking. The second uses data intelligence to analyze dark web activity.
Crypto won’t be the only topic discussed at Interpol’s general meeting. It will also discuss key elements of cybercrime. Note that this year, the 90e Interpol’s general assembly will take place in India (more precisely in New Delhi) from October 18 to October 21. It will see the participation of the 195 member countries and will notably welcome senior law enforcement officials.
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