Turkey adds crypto firms to money laundering, terror financing rules
ISTANBUL (Reuters) – Turkey added cryptocurrency trading platforms to the list of firms covered by anti-money laundering and terrorism financing regulation, it said in a presidential decree published early on Saturday.
The Official Gazette said the country’s latest expansion of rules governing cryptocurrency transactions would take immediate effect and cover “crypto asset service providers”, which would be liable to the existing regulations.
Last month Turkey’s central bank banned the use of crypto assets for payments on the grounds such transactions were risky. In the days that followed two Turkey-based cryptocurrency trading platforms were halted under separate investigations.
The probe into one of them, Thodex, led to the jailing on Thursday of six suspects including the siblings of its chief executive, Faruk Fatih Ozer, who Turkish authorities are seeking after he travelled to Albania.
(Reporting by Jonathan Spicer and Can Sezer)
Turkey adds crypto firms to terror funding regulations
The presidential decree adds cryptocurrency exchanges to anti-money laundering and terrorism financing rules.
Turkey has added cryptocurrency trading platforms to the list of firms covered by anti-money laundering and terrorism financing regulation, according to a presidential decree.
The Official Gazette said on Saturday the country’s latest expansion of rules governing cryptocurrency transactions would take immediate effect and cover “crypto asset service providers”, which would be liable to the existing regulations.
Last month, Turkey’s central bank banned the use of crypto assets for payments on the grounds such transactions were risky.
In the days that followed, two Turkey-based cryptocurrency trading platforms were halted under separate investigations – Thodex and Vebitcoin.
Six suspects linked to the Thodex probe were jailed on Friday pending trial.
The investigation into Thodex, which handled daily trades of hundreds of millions of dollars, initially led to the arrests of 83 people after customers complained of not being able to access their funds.
Interpol issued a detention warrant for the firm’s CEO, Faruk Fatih Ozer, who is sought by Turkish authorities after he travelled to Albania.
People in Turkey have been increasingly attracted by cryptocurrencies as protection against the decline of the lira and double-digit inflation.
Crypto firms in Turkey now come under anti-terror financing purview
Fast News
A presidential decree makes “crypto asset service providers” in Turkey responsible for seeing their assets are not used illegally.
A picture shows cryptocurrency, Bitcoin in Ankara, Turkey on January 2, 2018. (AA)
A presidential decree has added cryptocurrency exchanges to a list of firms covered by Turkey’s terror financing and money laundering.
The move came after a ban on using cryptocurrencies for making payments, which was introduced in response to claims that such transactions are too risky, took effect in Turkey on Friday.
The presidential decree makes “crypto asset service providers” responsible for seeing their assets are not used illegally. The decree immediately went into force with its publication in Turkey’s Official Gazette.
Turkish authorities last month launched fraud investigations into two cryptocurrency exchanges, Thodex and Vebitcoin.
READ MORE: Turkey arrests dozens in Thodex crypto exchange fraud
READ MORE: Turkey blocks bank accounts of Vebitcoin
Thodex investigation
Six suspects linked to the Thodex probe were jailed on Friday pending trial.
The investigation into Thodex, which handled daily trades of hundreds of millions of dollars, initially led to the arrests of 83 people after customers complained of not being able to access their funds. Interpol issued a detention warrant for the firm’s CEO on Turkey’s behalf.
Turks have been increasingly attracted by cryptocurrencies as protection against the decline of the lira and double-digit inflation.
READ MORE: Turkey bans crypto payments for buying goods, services
READ MORE: Why are cryptocurrencies booming in Turkey?
Source: TRTWorld and agencies