Australia’s financial crime regulator has removed 45 remittance and virtual asset service provider registrations over the past year, signaling tougher oversight of businesses exposed to money laundering and terrorism financing risks.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The Australian Transaction Reports and Analysis Centre, known as AUSTRAC, said it canceled, suspended or refused to renew the registrations. The regulator said the actions targeted businesses that failed to meet registration requirements or posed elevated financial crime risks.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The regulator said several businesses lacked the operational capacity to trade, while others remained dormant or had stopped providing registered services. Some also failed to report material business changes or maintain appropriate registrations.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
AUSTRAC Chief Executive Brendan Thomas said cross-border money movement creates significant money laundering and terrorism financing risks. He added that businesses with canceled registrations can no longer operate and that authorities may refer individuals connected to those businesses to law enforcement agencies.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The crackdown also includes cryptocurrency businesses. AUSTRAC’s public records show multiple virtual asset registrations canceled during 2026, including entities involved in cryptocurrency trading and related services.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The regulator has separately suspended Cryptolink’s crypto ATM operations, highlighting growing concern over digital currency services that can move funds quickly and with limited visibility.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The increased enforcement comes as Australia implements broader anti-money laundering and counter-terrorism financing reforms.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The updated framework took effect in March and expanded regulatory requirements across several industries. Virtual asset service providers and remittance businesses must meet registration and reporting obligations under the revised regime.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
AUSTRAC has also focused on inactive cryptocurrency exchanges and remittance businesses. Regulators have warned that dormant registrations can potentially be acquired or misused by criminals seeking access to established financial infrastructure.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
For legitimate crypto and remittance operators, the latest actions reinforce the importance of maintaining accurate registrations, managing financial crime risks and meeting reporting obligations. AUSTRAC said it will continue removing businesses that fail to meet regulatory expectations or present significant money laundering and terrorism financing risks.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Australia’s financial crime regulator has removed 45 remittance and virtual asset service provider registrations over the past year, signaling tougher oversight of businesses exposed to money laundering and terrorism financing risks. The Australian Transaction Reports and Analysis Centre, known as AUSTRAC, said it canceled, suspended or refused to renew the registrations. The regulator said the […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":10,"featured_media":762,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":"","_members_access_role":[],"_members_access_error":""},"categories":[2,43],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-19773","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-featured","category-general-news"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\n