The U.S. Treasury Department’s financial errors arm (FinCEN) has highlighted the increasing use of various cryptocurrency assets to support Mexican drug trafficking. FinCEN has issued an updated advisory warning U.S. financial companies what to watch out for in illicit fentanyl trafficking, including certainly the use of cryptocurrencies. FinCEN mentioned four tokens: Bitcoin, Ethereum, Monero and Tether.
FinCEN: Drug payments are made with BTC, ETH, XMR, USDT!
According to the U.S. Treasury Department’s Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN), criminal organizations in Mexico are using several recognized digital assets to purchase the raw materials needed to make the drug fentanyl. In this context, FinCEN referred to the use of Bitcoin and other tokens in a recommendation on Thursday. According to an updated FinCEN advisory to warn US financial companies about the network of criminal organizations producing the dangerous drug, cartels are “increasingly purchasing fentanyl precursor chemicals and production equipment” from China-based suppliers and paying their payments via Bitcoin (BTC), Ethereum (ETH), Monero (XMR). and Tether (USDT).
According to the warning, payments often end up in Chinese suppliers’ wallets hosted by cryptocurrency companies, sometimes through a secondary money transmitter. The new alerts, which update a 2019 FinCEN advisory, reflect issues that have primarily emerged in sanctions and criminal cases brought by U.S. authorities.
FCA arrests two men linked to £1bn illegal cryptocurrency business
The UK Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) and London police have released two people arrested on suspicion of running an illegal crypto business. According to the FCA, more than 1 billion pounds worth of unregistered cryptocurrency assets are believed to have been bought and sold through this business. The FCA investigated offices and two London residences linked to the two men, and police seized a number of digital devices during the searches. The investigation is ongoing and the FCA does not want to provide any further details.
cryptokoin.com As we reported, since January 2021, crypto asset services must be registered with the FCA. However, only 44 companies fulfilled this requirement. The UK has authorized the seizure and freezing of crypto and crypto-related items during the investigation. The FCA’s enforcement executive stated that the FCA has a valuable role to play in keeping dirty money out of the financial system and will do all it can to crack down on the illegal activities of crypto firms. It is stated that the FCA is focusing more on its enforcement powers.