Yesterday afternoon, The ABC reported that the Australian Transactions Reports & Analysis Centre (AUSTRAC) will now start policing money laundering via cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin:
The new law gives AUSTRAC the powers to police digital currency exchanges (DCEs) trading in a variety of crypto currencies including bitcoin, Ethereum and Ripple.
AUSTRAC CEO Nicole Rose said the new laws had been generally welcomed by the digital currency exchange sector.
“The new laws will strengthen [AUSTRAC’s] intelligence capabilities to help DCEs implement systems and controls that can minimise the risk of criminals using them for money laundering, terrorism financing and cybercrime,” Ms Rose said.
“It’s recognised that this reform will help protect their business operations from money laundering and terrorism financing, while regulation will also help strengthen public and consumer confidence in the sector”…
DCEs with a business operation located in Australia must now register with AUSTRAC and meet Anti-Money Laundering and Counter-Terrorism Financing (AML/CTF) compliance and reporting obligations before May 14…
The AML/CTF act requires businesses on AUSTRAC’s register to collect information to establish a customer’s identity, monitor transactional activity and report transactions or activity that is suspicious or involves large amounts of cash over $10,000.
Recall that only last week, AUSTRAC CEO, Nicole Rose, placed policing of money laundering via residential property on the back burner:
PETER RYAN: You also have to crack down on lawyers, accountants, real estate agents in declaring that amount of money: $10,000. How close are we to changing the law to make that happen?
NICOLE ROSE: That’s going to take a little bit longer. Obviously it’s going to have a big impost on small businesses and that’s something the Government are very mindful of.
So we’re looking at cheaper, more efficient ways we can do that in the interim, while government considers what that proposal might involve.
This comes despite Canberra promising more than a decade ago to begin policing money laundering through property, and the federal government conducting stakeholder consultations in 2008, 2010, 2012, 2014, and 2017.
It also comes despite a veritable conga-line of reputable international organisations urging Australia to meet its global commitments to implement anti-money laundering rules for real estate gatekeepers.
As well as frequent reports suggesting that money laundering through Australian property is rife, for example:
Real estate agents report unprecedented numbers of overseas’ buyers of residential and commercial property in Melbourne and Sydney paying cash…
An estimated 70 per cent of Chinese buyers pay in cash, according to Transparency International, an international non-government organisation targeting corruption.
As I have noted previously, it seems lobbying pressure from industry rent-seekers is largely to blame for the lack of political action with regards to property. Just consider “Highrise” Harry Triguboff’s comments in July in The AFR regarding Chinese buyers:
“The problem with Australians is they are very slow. They ask their lawyer, they ask their financial adviser, they ask their family, they ask everybody. The Chinese don’t ask anybody, they come off the plane, buy their unit and go.”
In other words, we can’t have proper checks because that would slow down sales.
Thus, it seems AUSTRAC is permitted to police dirty money flowing into everything, except Australian property.
