Australia’s anti-money laundering watchdog has taken regulatory action against 45 registrations held by remittance and cryptocurrency businesses over the past 12 months, using measures ranging from cancellations and suspensions to refusals to renew registrations.
AUSTRAC attributed the actions to several compliance and operational issues. Some providers had ceased activity or become insolvent, while others were deemed unable to continue operating. Registration errors and failures to disclose important changes also led to action. In the most serious cases, the agency identified substantial exposure to illicit finance and terrorism financing risks.
Cancellation has a direct consequence for an affected provider: it loses the registration required to keep operating. Brendan Thomas, who heads AUSTRAC, said information concerning people linked to certain businesses had also been passed to domestic authorities or relevant agencies abroad.
GetCoins Among Businesses Targeted by AUSTRAC
GetCoins was among the operators highlighted in AUSTRAC’s enforcement update. Its operator, BA Digital Ventures, lost its authorization as a virtual asset provider in June after customer complaints prompted regulatory action.
AUSTRAC said organized crypto investment scam operations allegedly used the GetCoins service. The agency worked on the matter alongside Australia’s National Anti-Scam Centre, with the intervention contributing to efforts to stop the alleged scam activity.
The announcement provided only a partial picture of the businesses affected. AUSTRAC withheld the identities of some operators covered by the 45 actions and did not give separate totals for remittance businesses and virtual asset firms. A separate public record maintained by the agency shows recent VASP registration decisions concerning GetCoins, Self Custody, Cryptolink, Coinsec Australia and Jam Xchange.
Scrutiny Extends to Western Union and Cryptolink
Those 45 registration decisions are not the only recent steps AUSTRAC has taken across the payments and virtual asset industries. Its wider regulatory activity includes an ongoing probe involving Western Union. In another case, AUSTRAC suspended Cryptolink’s VASP authorization in August, preventing the company’s network of cryptocurrency ATMs from operating.