Lawmakers on two key committees in the European Parliament have voted in favor of imposing limits on payments by unverified crypto users, as part of a large scale overhaul of money laundering laws.
The plans, considered alongside measures to forbid businesses from accepting large cash payments and create a new European Union Anti-Money Laundering Agency, AMLA, were approved by the parliament’s Economics and Civil Liberties committees on Tuesday, with six abstentions.
99 lawmakers voted in favor, while 8 voted against the limits.
Damien Careme, the French lawmaker who leads the parliament’s negotiations on the overhaul, earlier told reporters that the plans wouldn’t prevent crypto payments, since the cap of 1,000 euros won’t apply if a regulated wallet provider is involved or the identity of the payer is known.
The measures were proposed following a string of dirty money scandals within the bloc, including the Pandora Papers leaks and concerning the processing of Russian funds by Danske Bank.
Recommended for you:
- Dapper Removes ACH Withdrawal Option, Citing Circle
- Crypto Derivative Volumes Saw Speedy Growth as Prices Rose in January
- How to Build Decentralized Twitter
- Join the Most Important Conversation in Crypto and Web3 in Austin, Texas April 26-28
The vote allows negotiations to begin with the Council, representing EU member states, which has sought to outlaw cryptocurrencies that permit anonymity, such as monero and dash. In April the parliament is also set to provide final signoff to rules ensuring payers are identified when funds are transferred.
Read more: EU Money Laundering Law Won’t Prevent Crypto Payments, Lead Lawmaker Says
Edited by Parikshit Mishra.
