South Korea pledges crackdown on money laundering via digital currencies Business
Officials in South Korea have said there will be “no illegal cryptocurrency transaction in the country”, following meetings to address the volatility of digital currency markets and their illegal use in crimes such as money laundering.
Reports emerging in the Korea Herald suggest the South Korean government is preparing to ramp up regulation against digital currency, in a bid to more readily identify illegal digital currency transactions.
The chief financial regulator in the country, the Financial Services Commission (FSC), is now requiring digital currency exchanges and other financial companies to strengthen their monitoring and oversight of transactions, in order to better identify the criminal use of digital currencies such as BTC.
Nigeria SEC working with central bank to lift digital currency ban Business
Nigeria’s securities market regulator is working with the country’s central bank to forge a way forward for the embattled industry. The Securities and Exchange Commission acknowledged that a recent ban by the bank had disrupted Nigeria’s digital currency industry, while pledging support to promote innovation in the nascent industry.
Nigeria is the world’s second largest peer-to-peer digital currency market and the leader in Africa. However, a ban by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) on digital currency-related banking services has threatened to stifle its rapid growth. CBN claimed that the ban was to protect Nigerians from the risks that digital currencies pose, such as money laundering and terrorism financing.
Turkey bans ‘risky and volatile’ digital currencies for payments Business
Turkey’s central bank has banned citizens from using digital currencies for payments, saying that digital currencies pose great risks as they are unregulated and volatile. Digital currencies also undermine the payment methods the bank has put in place, including the national currency.
The Central Bank of the Republic of Turkey announced the new ban through the Official Gazette, prohibiting citizens from using digital currencies for payments directly or indirectly. Turkish firms are also prohibited from providing digital currency-related payment services. It termed digital currencies as risky because “they are neither subject to any regulation and supervision mechanisms nor a central regulatory authority.”
Indian Minister Anurag Thakur said the government would put investors at the forefront of their legislative effort, though it remains unclear exactly how they intend to protect investors.