The Australian Transaction Reports and Analysis Centre (AUSTRAC) cancelled, suspended, or refused to renew the registration of 45 cryptocurrency and remittance businesses over the past year. The regulatory agency’s Chief Executive Officer, Brendan Thomas, confirmed that these regulatory actions were enforced against virtual asset service providers (VASPs) that were inactive, insolvent, lacked operational capability, or posed unacceptable money laundering and terrorism financing risks.
This purge intensifies the scrutiny of the Australian financial ecosystem over cross-border channels and exchange platforms. High-profile cases such as the cancellation of GetCoins due to vulnerability to investment scams or the recent precautionary suspension of the Cryptolink ATM network demonstrate that entities lacking strict compliance controls (AML/CFT) are automatically excluded from the legal market.
The regulator stated that the deregistered firms can no longer legally operate and referred associated individuals to local and international law enforcement agencies. The next step for virtual asset service providers in Australia will involve undergoing more rigorous reviews and adapting to the transition toward the expanded financial licensing regime.
Disclaimer: Crypto Economy’s Flash News is prepared from official and public sources verified by our editorial team. Its purpose is to promptly report on relevant events within the crypto and blockchain ecosystem. This information does not constitute financial advice or investment recommendations. We recommend always verifying the official channels of each project before making related decisions.
