Travel Rule
In October 2018, the Financial Action Task Force (FATFThe Financial Action Task Force (FATF) is a global money lau... More), the international anti-money laundering (AML)Anti-Money Laundering (AML) rules are in place to help prote... More and terrorist financing watchdog, brought Virtual AssetThe term "virtual asset" refers to any digital representatio... More Service Providers (VASPs) within the global AML and Combating the Financing of Terrorism (CFT) umbrella with its interpretive notes to Recommendation 15 on New Technologies. VASPs are financial institutions that manage virtual assets including cryptocurrencies. This meant that VASPs had to assess money-laundering risk posed by counter-party VASPs. Just as traditional banks and financial institutions must comply with Know Your Customer (KYC)The know your customer or know your client (KYC) guidelines ... More and Customer Due Diligence (CDD) regulations, Recommendation 15 extends AML and CFT to VASPs. Instead of KYC, it’s Know Your VASP (KYV).
In June 2019, FATF modified its Recommendation 16 to include Virtual Asset Service Providers (VASPs). Under what is known as the “Travel Rule”, VASPs are required to share specific sender and receiver information for cross border cryptocurrencyA cryptocurrency (or crypto currency) is a digital asset des... More transactions over a set threshold. The Travel Rule is important as an AML and CFT regulation. It is designed to help law enforcement and regulatory authorities investigate suspicious transfers and illicit proceeds.