FATF AML and Terrorist Financing report

The Financial Action Task Force (FATF) has released a report,  Virtual Assets – Red Flag Indicators of Money Laundering and Terrorist Financing, to help national authorities detect whether virtual assets are being used for criminal activity. Based on more than 100 case studies collected by members of the FATF Global Network, it highlights the most important red flag indicators that could suggest criminal behavior. Key indicators in this report focus on:

• Technological features that increase anonymity, such as the use of peer-to-peer exchanges websites, mixing or tumbling services or anonymity-enhanced cryptocurrencies
• Geographical risks – criminals can exploit countries with weak, or absent, national measures for virtual assets
• Transaction patterns that are irregular, unusual or uncommon, which can suggest criminal activity
• Transaction size – if the amount and frequency has no logical business explanation
• Sender or recipient profiles – unusual behavior can suggest criminal activity
• Source of funds or wealth, which can relate to criminal activity