tl;dr
Australia’s financial intelligence agency, AUSTRAC, fined Melbourne-based crypto exchange Cointree $75,120 for delayed submission of suspicious activity reports (SMRs) related to anti-money laundering obligations. Cointree voluntarily disclosed the delays and cooperated with AUSTRAC, which acknowled...
Australia’s financial intelligence agency, AUSTRAC, has fined Melbourne-based crypto exchange Cointree $75,120 for delayed submission of suspicious activity reports (SMRs), which are critical for anti-money laundering compliance. The delays were voluntarily disclosed by Cointree, which cooperated with AUSTRAC and is now actively improving its reporting systems.
SMRs are mandatory filings required within three business days for suspected money laundering or within 24 hours for suspected terrorism financing. Timely submission is crucial to enable law enforcement to respond swiftly to potential criminal activities. AUSTRAC emphasized that delayed reports hinder such rapid action, impacting national security efforts.
This fine reflects AUSTRAC’s intensified enforcement across Australia’s digital currency exchange sector, a realm it views as vulnerable due to pseudonymity, global transaction speed, and other factors. In 2024, AUSTRAC has targeted 13 crypto businesses with enforcement actions and warned over 50 others for compliance issues. Furthermore, dormant registrations are being addressed, with inactive digital currency exchanges facing cancellation or voluntary withdrawal.
AUSTRAC plans to enhance transparency by launching a public registry of registered digital currency providers. Complementing regulatory efforts, the Australian government recently appointed Andrew Charlton as Assistant Minister for Science, Technology, and the Digital Economy to spearhead modernization and oversight improvements in the crypto space.
AUSTRAC CEO Brendan Thomas noted that Cointree’s full cooperation and proactive remediation of its systems prevented harsher penalties, underscoring the regulator’s commitment to not only enforcement but also collaborative compliance improvements within the industry.