As reported by CryptoSlate, the government of the United Kingdom has approved a bill improving law enforcement’s ability to seize crypto assets in connection with criminal conduct, including money laundering, fraud, and ransomware attacks.
According to the UK Parliament website, the bill was officially entered into law after receiving Royal Assent on October 26th.
Dubbed the “Economic Crime and Corporate Transparency Bill,” this legislation entitles government agencies, like the police, to commandeer cryptocurrency assets as part of an investigation without needing to arrest an individual for a criminal offense.
The bill was introduced in September 2022 and has undergone several amendments and corrections to cover money laundering or terrorist financing.
A UK-based accounting company, Swindell Accounting, wrote in a blog post:
“The bill will also strengthen anti-money laundering powers and help facilitate better information sharing about suspected offenses. In certain situations, businesses will be able to share information more easily for the purpose of preventing, investigating, or detecting economic crime. Civil liability will not apply to breaches of confidentiality for businesses supplying information about economic criminal offenses.”
The approval of the bill will reinforce the work of U.K. authorities in thwarting crypto-related crimes. CryptoSlate reported that the Metropolitan Police had seized millions of crypto linked to crimes before its approval.
This bill is part of the UK government’s recent initiative to supervise the steadily developing cryptocurrency industry. The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) recently presented new regulations mandating companies to warn investors about the potential risks of suffering a loss of funds due to investing in crypto investment
products.
On October 25th, the FCA stated their concern that several crypto firms were not in compliance with these promotional requirements and warned of impending enforcement action against violators. The regulations grant the government the power to impose unlimited fines on companies and even the punishment of jail for executives of these companies.
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