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Last week reports emerged that the Biden administration has formed an interagency task force on ransomware — and that the role of cryptocurrencies in ransomware will be at the top of the policy agenda.
According to reportsinteragency task force is focusing on helping companies strengthen their cybersecurity defenses – but will also look closely at how to stop cryptocurrency payments and how tracking crypto payments can increase efforts to find the attackers. While the potential range of policy outcomes from these discussions remains unclear, it is clear that the Biden administration sees the use of financial intelligence as critical to the fight against ransomware.
In this regard, the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) of the US Treasury has announced that it will hold event in August with the private sector to explore responses to ransomware. FinCEN previously held a ransomware exchange forum, which Elliptic attended, in November 2020 to convene experts and shape coordinated responses to this growing threat.
At Elliptic, we believe a high-level focus on preventing and monitoring ransomware payments is critical in light of this urgent cybersecurity threat. Like ours research showed, a new ransomware typology they create a huge business for cybercriminals.
Blockchain analytics solutions like Elliptic play a key role in enabling law enforcement disrupting ransomware profits where transparent cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin are used – and it is vital that governments everywhere take steps to ensure they have these analytical capabilities. But as attackers more and more demand paying the ransom in untraceable privacy coins like Monero, ransomware risks become even more serious.
With ransomware attacks on the rise – a wide range of options must be on the table, including a potential ransomware ban. Banning or severely restricting the ability to pay for ransomware would undoubtedly present challenges – but until ransomware gangs are robbed of their profits, this wave of attacks is unlikely to abate.
And as the executive director of Elliptik, Simone Maini, said a recent event hosted by the Royal United Services Institute, the crypto industry has a key role to play in curbing the ransomware epidemic. Cryptocurrency exchanges can prevent ransom payments to criminal groups and can report addresses and transactions related to ransomware to the police.
Elliptic’s solutions for blockchain analytics give cryptocurrency businesses the capabilities they need to detect and disrupt ransomware-related activity.
Contact us to learn more about how we can help your business identify and prevent activities involving ransomware.
🇺🇸 US crypto companies see regulatory compliance as key to success
According to the report dated 12 Bloomberg reportUS crypto companies such as Coinbase and Gemini embrace strong regulatory compliance as a key part of their growth strategies. As regulators around the world suppression of disrespect in the crypto space, these leading US exchanges take the view that short-term compliance costs will ultimately lead to long-term opportunities. We couldn’t agree more at Elliptic. As we said beforea compliance-first proactive mindset is driving business growth and is critical to the future success of the crypto industry.
🇰🇷 South Korea warns foreign exchange exchanges about obligations to prevent money laundering
Chairman of the Financial Services Commission of South Korea (FSC) issued a warning to crypto exchanges serving the South Korean market from abroad. FSC Chairman Eun Sung-ooo said companies offering Korean won to crypto exchange services will be required to register with Korea’s Financial Intelligence Unit (FIU) and comply with anti-money laundering (AML) requirements. This is the latest ua a series of FSC warnings on the need for crypto companies to ensure leak-proof compliance before the December 31st registration deadline. Contact us to learn more about how we can help your business meet South Korea’s AML requirements.
🇯🇵 Japan is thinking through the regulatory implications of DeFi
The Japan Financial Services Agency (JFSA) announced report on governance challenges in decentralized finance (DeFi) ecosystems. The report indicates that the JFSA is thinking carefully about how best to establish regulatory frameworks for the DeFi space in light of the Financial Action Task Force (FATF). updated guidance on virtual assets.
Elliptic CEO Simone Maini will speak at the conference REDEFINE Tomorrow 2021 Virtual Summit on July 23 to discuss compliance challenges related to DeFi.
🇪🇺 The ECB will redouble its efforts in the area of the digital euro
European Central Bank (ECB) announced on July 14 that he plans to launch a formal digital euro project. ECB published a report in October 2020 examining the challenges and issues surrounding central bank digital currency (CBDC). Findings from that report led to the ECB’s decision this week to launch a two-year phase of investigation that will examine design options for the digital euro. While the announcement stops short of formally committing the ECB to issue a digital euro, the ECB’s upcoming work suggests that a digital euro could one day become a reality.
🇦🇪 UAE clarifies CBDC priorities
In other CBDC news, the Central Bank of the United Arab Emirates has made the launch of a CBDC one of its top strategic priorities as part of its road map 2023-2026. The announcement makes the UAE the latest in a long line of countries to be prioritized CBDC development and continues on project The UAE partnered with Saudi Arabia last year to pilot cross-border CBDC settlements. Elliptic’s Chris DePow participates panel discussion on financial crime risks involving cryptocurrencies and CBDC on July 23 at the Regulation Asia Fraud and Financial Crime Asia 2021 conference. You can register for the event here.
Missed our last week’s update? See here: FinCEN hires first digital currency chief counsel
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