U.S. Treasury Recommends AML/CFT Rules for DeFi

The U.S. Treasury has submitted a report to Congress under the GENIUS Act, recommending that decentralized finance (DeFi) applications be subject to anti-money laundering (AML) and countering the financing of terrorism (CFT) obligations. The report also proposes a digital asset “hold law” safe harbor, which would allow institutions to temporarily freeze suspicious funds during investigations without requiring a court order.

The report highlights a significant rise in crypto-related crime, with the FBI recording approximately $9 billion in crypto fraud losses in 2024. This underscores the growing need for regulatory measures to address financial crimes in the digital asset space.