EU Cracks Down on Crypto in Sanctions Evasion Fight
European Union (EU) lawmakers have taken decisive action to bolster efforts to tackle sanctions violations, including those involving cryptocurrencies.
The new rules tighten the EU’s stance on digital assets, particularly cryptocurrencies, highlighting the urgent need for a unified approach with standardized definitions and penalties for violations.
On Tuesday, Members of the European Parliament (MEPs) voted to implement stringent new laws to curb violations related to travel bans, arms embargoes, sectoral restrictions, and asset freezes, focusing on crypto-assets and wallets.
The adopted text of the new rules expands the scope of EU restrictive measures to encompass a wide range of financial services, explicitly including the provision of “crypto-assets and wallets.” Sanctions can entail the freezing of assets, including those held in cryptocurrencies.
Highlighting the critical provisions of the legislation, a press release stated ,
“The new law sets consistent definitions for violations, including not freezing funds, not respecting travel bans or arms embargoes, transferring funds to persons subject to sanctions, or doing business with state-owned entities of countries under sanction.”
However, despite sanctions being established at the EU level, enforcement remains the responsibility of individual member states, leading to inconsistencies in definitions and penalties across jurisdictions.
In addition, the directive broadens the scope of punitive actions to cover deliberate infringements and instances of negligent trading in arms or dual-use items. To standardize enforcement procedures across EU member states, the initiative seeks to establish uniform and rigorous penalties for breaches of EU sanctions,
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