EU lawmakers target crypto transfers in battle against money laundering

euronews.com:

European Union lawmakers vote on Thursday on tougher safeguards for transfers of bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies, in the latest sign that regulators around the world are tightening up on the booming sector.

Two committees in the European Parliament thrashed out cross-party compromises that would require crypto firms to collect and share data on transactions in an industry that has so far thrived on its anonymity.

Crypto exchange Coinbase has warned the rules would usher in a surveillance regime that stifles innovation.

The $2.1 trillion (€1.9 trillion) crypto sector is still subject to patchy regulation across the world. But concerns that Bitcoin and its peers could upset financial stability and be used for crime have accelerated work by policymakers to bring the sector to heel.

Under the proposal first put forward last year by the EU's executive European Commission as part of a broader push against money laundering, crypto firms such as exchanges would have to obtain, hold, and submit information on those involved in transfers.

That would make it easier to identify and report suspicious transactions, freeze digital assets, and discourage high-risk transactions, said Ernest Urtasun, a Spanish Green Party lawmaker helping to steer the measure through the parliament.

The Commission had proposed applying the rule to transfers worth €1,000 or more, but under the cross-party agreement this "de minimis" rule has been scrapped - meaning all transfers would be in scope.

Urtasun said removing the threshold brings the draft law into line with rules from the global Financial Action Task Force that sets standards for combating money laundering. Those rules mean crypto firms must collect and share data on transactions.

Urtasun said an