The Anti-Money Laundering and Counter-Terrorism Financing Amendment Act 2017 of Australia came into force on 3 April 2018.  That Act brings digital currency exchange (DCE) providers with operations in Australia under the purview of the Australian Transaction Reports and Analysis Centre (AUSTRAC), Australia’s financial intelligence unit and anti-money laundering and counter-terrorism financing (AML/CTF) regulator.  One of the purposes is to minimise the risk of criminals exploiting DCEs to facilitate money laundering, terrorism financing and cybercrimes.  DCE providers are businesses that provide services to convert fiat currency into digital currency and vice versa.

DCE providers must now register with AUSTRAC and comply with the AML/CTF obligations under the Anti-Money Laundering and Counter-Terrorism Financing Act 2006 and Anti-Money Laundering and Counter-Terrorism Financing Rules Instrument 2007 (No.1).  Examples of those obligations include collecting information to establish a customer’s identity, monitoring transactions, reporting any activity that is suspicious or involves cash over A$10,000 (approximately S$10,140), keeping records, establishing and maintaining an AML/CTF program, performing ongoing customer due diligence and reporting on international fund transfer instructions.

To effectively combat crime, information derived from the reports furnished by the DCE providers may be disseminated to AUSTRAC’s domestic and overseas partners to assist with their investigations.

DCE providers that continue to operate whilst unregistered will face civil and criminal sanctions.

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