Editor’s Note
This article reports on the Financial Intelligence Unit (FIU) issuing show-cause notices to nine offshore cryptocurrency exchanges, including Binance, for potential non-compliance with Indian regulations. The development underscores the increasing regulatory scrutiny of the digital asset sector in India.
The Financial Intelligence Unit (FIU) under the Ministry of Finance has sent show-cause notices to 9 offshore Virtual Digital Assets Service Providers, including crypto exchange operator Binance.
New Delhi. If you have invested in cryptocurrency, be cautious. The Indian Ministry of Finance has sent show-cause notices to 9 offshore Virtual Digital Assets Service Providers, including crypto exchange operator Binance. The nine entities include Binance, Kucoin, Huobi, Kraken, Gate.io, Bittrex, Bitstamp, MEXC Global, and Bitfinex.
The FIU sent these notices for non-compliance with anti-money laundering laws. According to news agency PTI, the FIU has also written to the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY) to block the URLs of these 9 digital platforms. These platforms were operating in India without complying with the provisions of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA).
The Ministry of Finance stated in a release that besides Binance and Kucoin, notices have also been sent by the FIU to Huobi, Kraken, Gate.io, Bittrex, Bitstamp, MEXC Global, and Bitfinex. They have been issued notices for not registering as a reporting entity with FIU-IND. It should be noted that FIU-IND is a central agency responsible for collecting, processing, analyzing, and disseminating information related to suspicious financial transactions to enforcement agencies and foreign FIUs.
For Virtual Digital Assets Service Providers (VDA SPs) operating in India, it is mandatory to register as a reporting entity with FIU-IND. Additionally, they must comply with the provisions of the PMLA, 2002. So far, a total of 31 VDA-SPs have registered with FIU-IND.