Authorities around the world are on high alert to prevent the use of cryptos to finance terrorism. The new class of assets is indeed increasingly used to finance illegal activities. One of the recent examples of this trend involves the Binance exchange, according to an investigation by the government of Israel. Here is what it is.
Binance asserts its position as a compliance leader
Earlier this year, Israel showed that it wants to improve crypto supervision. Now Reuters is reporting that many Binance accounts used to fund illegal activities have been seized by Israel. Israeli authorities made the seizure as part of the fight against terrorism. The operation has so far involved around 190 accounts, and has been since 2021. It was carried out by the National Office for the Fight against Terrorist Financing (NBCTF). It appears that two of the seized accounts were used by the Islamic State. There would also be dozens of accounts linked to the Islamist group Hamas.
That said, Binance did not fail to react to Reuters statements. “Once again, the same Reuters reporter deliberately omits crucial facts to fit his story. This time, he raised questions about our compliance policies for preventing and combating cryptocurrency terrorist financing. This is a subject that we take very seriously.», has explained the exchange.
Binance added: “A crypto exchange’s true compliance measures are the steps it takes to identify and respond to suspicious deposits, and it is in these areas that Binance is an industry leader. When we learn of misconduct, we step in and take appropriate action, including freezing funds and working with law enforcement to support investigations“.
Right now, Israel is working on the regulation of cryptocurrencies, while trying to fight the financing of terrorism. In particular, the government has planned changes related to cryptos to facilitate tax reporting. Meanwhile, the Israel Securities Authority plans to come up with new definitions for digital assets. The latter should make it possible to place cryptos under the supervision of the government. It should be clarified that in February, the Central Bank of Israel published clauses for the country’s crypto regulatory proposal. One indicated a 100% reserve requirement for stablecoins.
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