Recently, well-known exchange Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong criticized on Twitter, blasting anti-money laundering (AML) regulations as a policy failure. Moreover, these AML regulations have also significantly affected legitimate users and even sparked issues of debanking, igniting international discussions.
Global anti-money laundering regulations have failed, spending over $200 billion a year but achieving less than 0.02% effectiveness.
Armstrong cited United Nations data showing that approximately $213 billion is spent annually on anti-money laundering enforcement worldwide, but the actual interception of illegal funds is only 0.2%. He stated that the work of anti-money laundering could be handed over to Trump's and Musk's Government Efficiency Committee (DOGE).
Armstrong criticized on Twitter that banks are forced to 'self-regulate', and legitimate accounts are also affected.
Some venture capital firms responded to Armstrong's post, stating that the inefficiency of anti-money laundering stems from many countries outsourcing the responsibility of anti-money laundering to financial institutions. According to regulations, banks could face fines of up to billions of dollars if they are too lenient in monitoring money laundering activities.
Under this pressure, banks choose to 'rather wrongfully kill than let go,' which also affects many originally legitimate accounts. Especially in recent years, as cases of debanking have increased, many crypto businesses have been categorized as customers to be refused or had their services terminated by banks due to 'risk considerations', with news of such occurrences emerging endlessly.
(Ripple CEO criticizes the US for pressuring the crypto industry, personal account terminated by Citibank)
Decentralization continues, Armstrong calls for policy exit mechanisms.
Most experts believe that anti-money laundering regulations are not only limited in their effectiveness in curbing illegal financial activities, but also have a negative impact on the overall economy and legitimate users. Armstrong pointed out that relevant policies should include a sunset provision, meaning that regulations need to automatically expire after 5 to 10 years unless Congress reassesses and decides to extend them. Such a mechanism can avoid the dilemma of ineffective policies that are difficult to amend in the long term.
(FDIC suppressing the crypto industry document exposed, Coinbase legal team criticizes: quite shameful)
This article discusses Coinbase CEO criticizing anti-money laundering laws as a complete failure: spending $200 billion a year results in less than 0.02% effectiveness, better to let DOGE take charge. First appeared in Chain News ABMedia.
