The US Treasury Department’s financial crimes arm (FinCEN) has drawn attention to the increasing use of various cryptocurrency assets to support Mexican drug trafficking. FinCEN has issued an updated advisory warning US financial companies about what to look out for in illicit fentanyl trafficking, including the use of certain cryptocurrencies. FinCEN mentioned four tokens – Bitcoin, Ethereum, Monero and Tether.
FinCEN: Drug payments are made in BTC, ETH, XMR, USDT!
According to the US Treasury Department’s Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN), criminal organizations in Mexico are using several popular digital assets to purchase the raw materials needed to make the drug fentanyl. In this context, FinCEN cited the use of Bitcoin and other tokens in an advisory on Thursday. According to the FinCEN advisory, updated to alert US financial firms about the network of criminal organizations producing the dangerous drug, cartels are “increasingly purchasing fentanyl precursor chemicals and production equipment” from China-based suppliers and paying for them with tokens such as Bitcoin (BTC), Ethereum (ETH), Monero (XMR) and Tether (USDT).
According to the alert, payments often end up in Chinese suppliers’ wallets hosted at cryptocurrency firms, sometimes through a secondary money transmitter. The new warnings, which update a FinCEN recommendation from 2019, reflect issues that have already been raised in sanctions and criminal cases brought by US authorities.
FCA arrests two men linked to a £1 billion illegal cryptocurrency business
The UK Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) and London police have released two men arrested on suspicion of running an illegal crypto business. According to the FCA, more than 1 billion pounds worth of unregistered cryptocurrency assets are believed to have been bought and sold through this business. The FCA searched the offices and two London residences associated with these two individuals, and police seized a number of digital devices during the searches. The investigation is ongoing and the FCA does not wish to provide further details.
As Kriptokoin.com reported, since January 2021, crypto asset services must be registered with the FCA. However, only 44 companies have fulfilled this requirement. The UK has authorized the seizure and freezing of crypto and crypto-related items during the investigation. The FCA’s executive director stated that the FCA has an important role in keeping dirty money out of the financial system and that they will do their best to curb the illegal activities of crypto firms. It is stated that the FCA is leaning more towards enforcement powers.
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