G20 to Start Regulating Crypto in Accordance with FATF

The member states of the G20 international forum have agreed and signed a joint declaration that includes, among other things the agreement to lay down regulations for cryptocurrencies, in a move that was in line with the new standards set by the Financial Action Task Force (FATF).

The recent G20 talks over the weekend had critical agendas on the board, like climate change, sustainable development, gender inequality and the movement of refugees. The agreement regarding crypto regulations was signed at the conclusion of the meet, as reported by various other media outlets.

“An open and resilient financial system, grounded in agreed international standards, is crucial to support sustainable growth… We will regulate crypto-assets for anti-money laundering and countering the financing of terrorism in line with FATF standards, and we will consider other responses as needed,” the document read. It is clear that the countries are not entirely against cryptocurrencies, but are certainly taking steps to regulate and closely monitor them to keep their trading regulated and crack down on illicit trading and crypto-crimes.

The member states also agreed to “continue to work together to seek a consensus-based solution to address the impacts of the digitalization of the economy on the international tax system with an update in 2019 and a final report by 2020.”

In October, the FATF had mandated that the 37 members of the organization employ the standards set by the Task Force in their respective countries and territories by June of next year. The regulations allow the members to regulate and monitor suspicious activities of cryptocurrency-related entities including wallet providers, cryptocurrency exchanges and ICO holders.

Countries failing to meet such standards may risk getting put on the Blacklist.

The G20 includes members that are common in FATF. The European Union (EU), and 19 countries including Australia, Japan, the U.K., the U.S., and Argentina.

Bobby Lee, the co-founder of the BTCC exchange, tweeted in response to the newly set regulations on the industry:

“national governments are slowly but surely losing their monopoly and ability to issue fiat money.”

In line with the rules and reforms being set by FATF and G20, many non-members but close allies have also started to lay down regulations of their own inside their countries to stay up to speed with the world’s frontrunners. Countries like Thailand, Japan, and some individual U.S. states have already set in motion plans to regulate cryptocurrency and Blockchain technology on their terms.