The cryptocurrency BitMEX has embarked on a heated debate over Bitcoin, money laundering and the US dollar. She studied the most likely money laundering scenarios and concluded that Bitcoin would be the last resort for criminals.
Blanching $ 1 Million with Bitcoin
BitMEX has addressed a scenario in which an individual would like to transfer $ 1 million and turn it into Bitcoin (BTC). He would face two choices:
"You can either open an account on a cryptocurrency exchange service, or do an over the counter (OTC) transaction with the help of a broker. "Crypto-purses accepting such a large sum of money must cooperate with the banking sector, not forgetting that financial institutions require verification of KYC / AML standards for all trading platform accounts.
Brokers who do not require a KYC audit process in cash and charge significant overhead. What's more, finding a company that could transfer $ 1 million is not an easy task.
The numbers are clear
According to a survey by the British giant PricewaterhouseCooper (PwC),at present, 49% of organizations worldwide report being victims of financial crime. One-third of those who responded to the survey were targeted by cyber-offenders and 52% admitted that their own employees orchestrated the robbery. According to the European Police Cooperation Agency Europol, $ 5.3 billion was laundered using cryptocurrencies. However, estimating the exact amount of money laundered with fiat money, Bitcoin or other crypto-currencies is rather arduous .
Well-known organizations like the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) and the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) estimate that "criminal profits accounted for 3.6% of global GDP, with 2.7% ($ 1.6 billion) in 2009."
Taking into account the numbers, it is clear that crypto-currencies are little used in money laundering.
"It is very difficult to launder money in the cryptocurrency market if you are not willing to provide KYC information. Real estate is much easier, and real estate brokers will do everything they can to ease the KYC / AML reporting requirements. Satoshi is not the one who facilitates the best illegal financing: no, it's Uncle Sam. "Do you think that the claims that crypto-currencies favor money laundering are justified? Or do you agree with BitMEX that the US dollar is widely used to launder money? Comment in the comments section below.