News & Analysis as of September 2, 2025

Money Services Business

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The Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) is a bureau of the U.S. Department of the Treasury charged with detecting and combatting illegal activity within the financial system. FinCEN detects evidence of money laundering, terrorist financing and other financial crimes by collecting, monitoring, and analyzing financial transaction data. Such data is disseminated to both domestic and international law enforcement agencies. less -

FinCEN Issues Southwest Border Geographic Targeting Order Aimed to Combat Mexican-based Drug Cartels

Ballard Spahr LLP on 3/18/2025

We have written previously about the new administration’s significant shifts in its approach to criminal enforcement and prosecution of money laundering cases. Specifically, we wrote about shifts at the U.S. Department of...more

Pending Changes to Anti-Money Laundering Program Requirements for MSBs and Other Financial Institutions

Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati on 8/20/2024

Money services businesses (MSBs), a category which includes money transmitters (e.g., PayPal and other payment facilitators), as well as administrators and exchangers of convertible virtual currencies (e.g., Bitcoin...more

FinCEN Targets Convertible Virtual Currency Mixing to Combat Terrorist Financing and Other Illegal Transactions

Morrison & Foerster LLP on 10/27/2023

Convertible virtual currency (CVC) mixing is in the crosshairs of U.S. national security policy. On October 19, 2023, the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (“FinCEN”) of the U.S. Department of the Treasury (“Treasury”)...more

Regulators Sharpen Focus on Anti-Money Laundering Expectations for Crypto Industry

Cadwalader, Wickersham & Taft LLP on 1/20/2023

U.S. regulators are signaling heightened expectations for anti-money laundering compliance within the crypto industry. Although FinCEN issued guidance in 2013 interpreting virtual currency “administrators” and “exchanges” as...more

FinCEN and OFAC Issue First Joint Action in Cryptocurrency Market

McGlinchey Stafford on 11/11/2022

On October 11, 2022, the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) and the Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) acted in parallel to issue the first joint action in the cryptocurrency market against Bittrex. Bittrex...more

Non-U.S. Crypto and Other Money Services Businesses: Have Customers in the U.S.? Beware of AML and Sanctions Compliance Risk

Orrick - On the Chain on 3/4/2022

Two recent guilty pleas involving a cryptocurrency exchange serve as a reminder to all money services businesses (“MSBs”)—including those ostensibly located outside the United States but that conduct business there—of the...more

FinCEN Crypto & Ransomware Guidance: Will 2022 Bring More Changes?

Torres Trade Law, PLLC on 1/26/2022

The Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (“FinCEN”) of the U.S. Department of the Treasury (“Treasury”) has made clear that businesses engaging in certain activities involving virtual currencies are subject to registration,...more

Biden Administration Faces Last-Ditch Efforts by the Trump Administration to Curb the Digital Assets Industry

Pillsbury Winthrop Shaw Pittman LLP on 1/25/2021

The incoming Biden team will need to quickly address significant digital asset issues, including a major enforcement action and a significant proposed FinCEN rule initiated in the final days of the outgoing administration. ...more

FinCEN Proposes Crypto Reporting and Recordkeeping Requirements

Morgan Lewis on 1/20/2021

Recently proposed regulations could present significant compliance burdens for the banks and money service businesses that engage in cryptocurrency transactions with unhosted wallets or wallets held in jurisdictions specified...more

FinCEN Looks to Rein In Cryptocurrency Transactions

Latham & Watkins LLP on 1/15/2021

A new proposal would subject financial institutions and exchanges to onerous recordkeeping and reporting requirements for certain digital currency transactions. In a surprise release in the waning days of the Trump...more

FinCEN’s Proposed Rulemaking for Cryptocurrency – The Balance of National Security vs. Privacy

Rothwell, Figg, Ernst & Manbeck, P.C. on 1/6/2021

Just before the Christmas holidays, the Department of the Treasury’s Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) issued proposed rulemaking entitled “Requirements for Certain Transactions Involving Convertible Virtual...more

Proposed Rules for Transactions with Unhosted Virtual Currency Wallets

K2 Integrity on 1/6/2021

On 18 December, the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) at the U.S. Department of the Treasury announced highly anticipated and controversial new proposed requirements designed to mitigate illicit finance risks...more

FinCEN Proposes New Rule for “Unhosted” Virtual Currency Wallets

Ballard Spahr LLP on 12/24/2020

On December 18, the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (“FinCEN”) issued a proposal to impose on banks and money service businesses (“affected institutions”) a new set of rules for digital currency transactions involving...more

Financial Institutions to Remain Vigilant of Ransomware Attacks as they are Facilitators of Ransomware Payments

Foodman CPAs & Advisors on 11/3/2020

On October 1, 2020, the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) issued an advisory to alert Financial Institutions (FI) relating to “predominant trends, typologies, and potential indicators of ransomware and associated...more

FinCEN Takes Action Against Bitcoin Mixer for Violating the Bank Secrecy Act

Foley & Lardner LLP on 10/27/2020

On October 19, 2020, The Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) announced its first action against a bitcoin mixer: a $60 million civil penalty against Larry Dean Harmon. Harmon was the founder and operator of Helix...more

FinCEN Issues Guidance on Ransomware Attacks

Jones Day on 10/23/2020

The prevalence, sophistication, and severity of ransomware attacks have increased anti-money laundering risks faced by financial institutions both as targets of ransomware attacks and as potential intermediaries in...more

DOJ Cyber-Digital Task Force Releases Cryptocurrency Enforcement Framework

Herbert Smith Freehills Kramer on 10/13/2020

Building off a 2018 alert outlining cyber threats generally, and following the federal indictment for money laundering of the founders of the offshore cryptocurrency exchange BitMEX, on Oct. 8, 2020, the U.S. Department of...more

Treasury Department issues ransomware guidance in response to significant uptick in ransomware attacks

Hogan Lovells on 10/6/2020

In response to the significant rise in ransomware attacks since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic and just in time for Cybersecurity Awareness Month, the Department of the Treasury’s Financial Crimes Enforcement Network...more

Blockchain Week in Review - October 2019

Perkins Coie on 10/18/2019

U.S. Developments - U.S. Federal Regulatory Developments - CFTC, FinCEN, and SEC Leaders Release a Join Statement on Digital Assets - On October 11, 2019, the heads of the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (“CFTC”),...more

FinCEN Publishes Guidance Pertaining to Certain Business Models Involving Convertible Virtual Currencies

Katten Muchin Rosenman LLP on 6/26/2019

On May 9, the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network of the US Department of the Treasury (FinCEN) issued guidance relating to how its regulations apply to certain businesses that transact in "convertible virtual currencies"...more

Virtual Currency Guidance + Enforcement Actions = AML Regulators Are Watching

Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati on 5/29/2019

A few days before thousands of blockchain industry participants poured into New York for “Blockchain Week,” the Department of the Treasury’s Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) issued guidance on virtual currencies...more

Data Privacy + Cybersecurity Insider - May 2019 #4

Robinson & Cole LLP on 5/24/2019

The North American Securities Administrators Association (NASAA) this week approved an information security model rule package aimed at improving the cybersecurity posture of the 17,543 state-registered advisers. ...more

New FinCEN Cryptocurrency Guidance Clarifies Applicability of Anti-Money Laundering Regulations to Virtual Currency Business...

Robinson+Cole Data Privacy + Security Insider on 5/24/2019

The Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) is the U.S. Treasury Department bureau charged with monitoring financial transactions in order to combat domestic and international money laundering, terrorist financing and...more

FinCEN Releases Advisory for Banks, MSBs on Potentially Illicit Transactions with Iran

Akin Gump Strauss Hauer & Feld LLP on 10/23/2018

• On October 11, 2018, FinCEN released an advisory to help U.S. financial institutions better detect potentially illicit transactions related to Iran. • The advisory describes how Iran attempts to access the international...more

Should You Bank a Virtual Currency Business?

Ward and Smith, P.A. on 9/28/2018

Virtual currencies like Bitcoin and Ethereum have spawned many types of businesses that need banking services. Many banks "de-risk" -- do not provide banking services -- to these businesses. Many virtual currency...more

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