Australia has cancelled, suspended, or refused to renew 45 crypto and remittance registrations over the past year

According to Odaily, the Australian Transaction Reports and Analysis Centre (AUSTRAC) has cancelled, suspended, or refused to renew 45 cryptocurrency and remittance business registrations over the past year, targeting service providers that are inactive, insolvent, or lack operational capacity.

AUSTRAC CEO Brendan Thomas stated that businesses whose registrations have been cancelled are not permitted to continue operating; some related individuals have been referred to Australian and overseas law enforcement or regulatory cooperation agencies. Additional issues include failure to report material changes, incorrect registration information, and significant money laundering or terrorist financing risks.

AUSTRAC noted that the virtual asset service provider registration of GetCoins, a brand under BA Digital Ventures, was cancelled in June following customer complaints. The agency stated that GetCoins is suspected of being exploited by organised cryptocurrency investment scam operations, and this action was taken in collaboration with the National Anti-Scam Centre to help disrupt related activities.

AUSTRAC did not disclose the full list of 45 businesses, nor did it provide a breakdown of the categories of crypto and remittance service providers. The public VASP register shows that recent actions have also involved Cryptolink, Self Custody, Jam Xchange, and Coinsec Australia; AUSTRAC has additionally launched an investigation into Western Union and suspended Cryptolink's cryptocurrency ATM network. (Cointelegraph)