Bitfinex testing new AML compliance tool

Notabene’s Travel Rule solution, which went live in 2020, currently conducts transactions across 50 cryptocurrency exchanges. Bitfinex, a cryptocurrency exchange, is prepared to conduct a trial run of a new anti-money laundering (AML) technology on its platform.

The business stated Wednesday that it would begin testing a new solution for complying with the Financial Action Task Force’s (FATF) “Travel Rule,” a new anti-money laundering and counter-terrorism financing guideline for financial institutions that was implemented in 2019.

Bitfinex worked with compliance startup Notabene to install Notabene’s software-as-a-service solution for identifying digital asset accounts, tracking cross-border transactions, and adhering to other extensive responsibilities imposed on virtual asset service providers (VASP). According to the corporation, the integration would enable it to maintain privacy while collecting and processing Travel Rule-related data.

The release states that the solution enables Bitfinex to communicate, transmit, and receive counterparty information alongside blockchain transactions to any counterparties using the same infrastructure. Tether, Bitfinex’s sibling firm that runs the world’s biggest stablecoin, Tether (USDT), has also begun using the Notabenes solution.

Bitfinex’s chief compliance officer, Peter Warrack, said that the exchange has “always taken a leadership role in complying with new worldwide regulatory standards.”

According to Notabene CEO Pelle Brndgaard, the company will debut its Travel Rule solution in August 2020. At the moment, the service processes transactions between at least 50 different exchanges, including Paxful, Luno, Bitso, and OnChain Custodian.

Notabene has been conducting trials in a variety of countries, including an early October pilot with the Financial Services Regulatory Authority of Abu Dhabi Global Market.

Brndgaard noted that compliance with the Travel Rule has been increasing at a quick pace each quarter, and the business anticipates that large VASPs will be compliant by the first or second quarter of 2022.

Since establishing the crypto Travel Rule more than two years ago, the FATF has worked to strengthen it and adapt it to the developing bitcoin sector. On Oct. 28, the FATF emphasized the increasing urgency for global authorities to apply the Travel Rule as part of an update to its VASP advice.

The authority released a review paper in February to update its Travel Rule advice to include stablecoins and peer-to-peer crypto transactions.

Also Read: The Chairman Of The Singapore Monetary Authority Sees A ‘Useful Role’ For Crypto And Stablecoins