The Cyprus Securities and Exchange Commission (CySEC) today released a consultative paper proposing that the legal provisions made in the 5th AML Directive (AMLD5) be adopted into the country’s law.
Today’s announcement is a result of concerns raised by legal entities dealing in crypto assets whose needs are not being met by the current regulations. These concerns were raised through CySEC’s innovation hub, which is why the regulator feels that the conversion of the AMLD5 provisions into national law is warranted.
The CySEC is also recommending that AMLD5 be gold-plated in accordance with recommendations from FATF so that the following activities may be governed by the AML/CFT obligations, which are not part of AMLD5:
- Exchange between crypto assets,
- Transfer of virtual assets, and
- Participation in and provision of financial services related to an issuer’s offer and/or sale of a crypto asset.
The regulator feels that this adoption is quite necessary in order to comprehensively tackle the money laundering risks associated with activities in the crypto sector.