Japan: Only 0.16% Of 2017 Money Laundering Reports Came From Crypto Exchanges
February 23 2018 - 11:52AM
ADVFN Crypto NewsWire
The proportion of suspected money laundering cases involving cryptocurrency
in Japan is a fraction of the fiat total for 2017, new data reported by Nikkei
Asian Review shows.
As Nikkei reports, quoting statistics from Japan’s National
Police Agency, from April to December 2017, cryptocurrency
exchanges reported 669 instances of suspicious activity they
suspect could be money laundering.
This compares to around 347,000 cases reported by banks in 2017,
15,400 from credit card companies and 13,300 from credit unions,
Nikkei reports, citing police records. The total number of money
laundering reports for the whole of 2017 stood at just over
400,000.
The reporting period for cryptocurrency began in April, 2017
after new legislation obliged exchange
operators to increase transparency and adhere to anti-money
laundering regulations.
The figures are promising against a continued narrative from
international governments that money laundering is a key
battleground to be targeted by increased regulations.
Of the 669 cases, it is likely many involved “questionable
transactions repeated frequently in a short span of time,”
Nikkei notes, further reducing the number of bad actors involved in
the practice.
Japan continues to keep a close eye on its fledgling exchange
sphere. In the wake of Japanese crypto exchange Coincheck’s
$530mln hack in January, 2018,
reporting obligations for exchanges have tightened, with finance
minister Taro Aso confirming “impartial”
inspections by regulators are occurring across exchanges.
In Australia meanwhile, Cointelegraph reported earlier this week,
cryptocurrency “scams” sparked 1200 complaints to consumer watchdog
the Australian Competition & Consumer Commission last year.
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