Crypto plans could ‘put smaller US brokers out of business’

A US Treasury proposal seeking to bring regulatory clarity to the cryptocurrency sector could unintentionally put smaller brokers out of business. These demands would apply to brokers including centralised platforms, payment processors and some decentralised protocols that facilitate the sale or exchange of crypto assets. While some of the proposals have been welcomed, the compliance onus could force smaller brokers out of business, says Rabya Anwar, a financial regulation partner at Keystone Law. Given the compound risks of cryptocurrency, compliance risks start with tax evasion and expand from sanctions evasion to funding dictators and criminal networks. He adds: “Institutions that disregard proper due diligence of crypto assets are potentially leaving themselves liable for facilitating tax evasion.”