Bharat Web3 Association calls for teamwork in building ironclad laws against money laundering

The Indian crypto industry body, Bharat Web3 Association (BWA), recently met with the stakeholders of the Indian Web3 industry. The purpose of this meeting was to initiate a dialogue on steps that could prevent the misuse of cryptocurrencies for illegal activities such as money laundering and terrorist financing. BWA called for a concerted effort by the Indian Web3 community to create a strong anti-money laundering framework to ensure that crypto transactions, which are largely anonymous, are not used to facilitate criminal activities.

This meeting marked BWA’s first ever training and workshop on the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA). In India, all crypto-related businesses are mandated to comply with the PMLA. Under this law, crypto firms, including exchanges, are required to obtain KYC of every new user who registers on their platforms. In addition, crypto firms are also expected to monitor activities processed through their platform and report any suspicious ones to law enforcement.

Dilip Chenoy, the chairman of the BWA, joined other leaders from the Web3 industry to discuss ways that could prevent the use of crypto assets to facilitate illegal transactions. Some of the main ideas discussed at the meeting to ensure safe and legal use of crypto assets included mutual education, strict compliance guidelines, appointment of independent compliance officers, introduction of self-regulation for industry players and fine-tuning of the overall regulatory benchmarking.

Sumit Gupta, CEO of CoinDCX, posted his experience of this BWA session on social media.

“It was a great success. Vivek Agarwal, Director of FIU-IND, served as the keynote speaker and emphasized the importance of collaboration in building a strong AML framework. The workshop proved to be a highly engaging and productive forum, fostering lively discussions and collaborative exchange of ideas,” Gupta noted.

Another highlight of the event included the launch of a report by BWA titled — The Path to Accountable Person Status under PMLA: The Journey of Indian VASPs.

According to Gupta, “This report will serve as a key resource in the VDA sector and beyond, highlighting the critical role of compliance in facilitating the growth and adoption of VDA in India.”

Rohan Bhandari, Head of Compliance at CoinDCX and Muthuswamy Iyer, Senior Director, WazirX were among others who graced the BWA’s PMLA training session.