Taiwan Toughens Anti-Money Laundering Regulations for Crypto Service Providers
Summary:
Taiwan has revised its Anti-Money Laundering regulations, addressing fraud and enforcing stricter rules for virtual asset service providers (VASPs). The proposed amendments, which include stricter registration requirements for VASPs and harsh penalties for violations, have been forwarded to Taiwan's national parliament for review. The changes come as part of the "New Four Laws to Combat Fraud" initiative and would potentially penalize non-compliant entities with up to two-year jail terms and fines up to $1.5 million. The revisions also entail new legal categories for money laundering offenses tied to third-party and virtual asset accounts.
Taiwan has revised its Anti-Money Laundering (AML) stipulations in an effort to tackle fraud and augment AML guidelines applicable to virtual asset service providers (VASPs). Taiwan's Justice Ministry has put forth changes to the current AML provisions that could subject non-compliant entities to a possible two-year imprisonment sentence and fines amounting to $1.5 million. The proposed changes will be forwarded to Taiwan's national parliament for examination. The so-called "New Four Laws to Combat Fraud," suggested by Taiwan's Executive yuan, aims to intensify the campaign against fraud and tightly control money laundering prevention strategies for cryptocurrency service providers. The modified regulations comprise four fundamental elements, which include the fraud crime damage prevention regulations, the money laundering prevention act, the technology investigation, and security law, plus the communications security and supervision law. Among these, the revamped money laundering prevention act is the most prominent change. This new act is specifically aimed at VASPs who could face serious penalties if they contravene the law. New registration prerequisites and restrictions for domestic and overseas currency dealers are among three specific changes made to this act. If virtual asset service providers provide their services without the necessary registration, they could face up to two years in prison under the newly revised laws. A new legalese category has been added for money laundering offenses associated with third-party payment and virtual asset accounts. Using third-party accounts for money laundering could result in jail sentences ranging from six months to five years and fines reaching up to 50 million Taiwanese dollars ($1.5 million), according to the changes proposed. Deputy Minister of Justice, Huang Mou-hsin, explained that while the present stipulations only permit administrative penalties for non-compliant cryptocurrency companies, the proposed changes categorize such infractions as criminal, carrying hefty fines and imprisonment. The new law would put foreign cryptocurrency platforms at risk unless they establish local companies and seek AML registration. This recent proposal follows closely on the heels of an announcement by the country's securities regulator, who expressed an intention to propose new laws for digital assets by September of the current year.
Published At
5/9/2024 3:19:05 PM
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