Patrick

2024

Opus

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 <p class="paragraph">In a recent regulatory development, <a rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" title="crypto" href="https://thebittimes.com/tag/crypto.html">crypto</a>currency <a rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" title="payment" href="https://thebittimes.com/tag/payment.html">payment</a>s to “hosted wallets” using unidentified self-custody <a rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" title="crypto" href="https://thebittimes.com/tag/crypto.html">crypto</a> wallets are now effectively <a rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" title="illegal" href="https://thebittimes.com/tag/illegal.html">illegal</a> in the European Union (EU). This decision i”s part of a set of new anti-money laundering laws (AML) in the continent.</p>
 <p class="paragraph">The majority of the EU Parliament’s lead commission approved the prohibition on March 19, according to Patrick Breyer’s post.</p>
 <p class="paragraph">Notably, Dr. Breyer is a member of the European Parliament for the Deutsch Piraten Partei and one of the two leaders who opposed this approval. Gunnar Beck was the other Parliament member who voted against it, representing the Alternative for Germany (AfD) party.</p>
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 <figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img decoding="async" width="1024" height="576" src="https://cdn.thebittimes.com/images/2024/03/24/2623c27d2fda127faca24ba456ef89de.webp" alt class="wp-image-162922" srcset="https://cdn.thebittimes.com/images/2024/03/24/2623c27d2fda127faca24ba456ef89de.webp 1024w, https://cdn.thebittimes.com/images/2024/03/24/2623c27d2fda127faca24ba456ef89de.webp 300w, https://cdn.thebittimes.com/images/2024/03/24/2623c27d2fda127faca24ba456ef89de.webp 768w, https://cdn.thebittimes.com/images/2024/03/24/2623c27d2fda127faca24ba456ef89de.webp 1200w" sizes="(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px">
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   <p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.38;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt;" id="docs-internal-guid-5fc9c0af-7fff-0bd5-26b1-9f58db1a4f5f"><span style="font-size:11pt;font-family:Arial,sans-serif;color:#000000;background-color:transparent;font-weight:400;font-style:normal;font-variant:normal;text-decoration:none;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:pre;white-space:pre-wrap;">Voting results of the EU Parliament’s lead committee for AML. Source: </span><span style="font-size:11pt;font-family:Arial,sans-serif;color:#000000;background-color:transparent;font-weight:400;font-style:italic;font-variant:normal;text-decoration:none;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:pre;white-space:pre-wrap;">Piraten Partei</span></p>
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 <h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-eu-s-new-aml-cash-and-crypto-payments-made-partially-illegal">EU’s new AML: Cash and crypto payments made partially illegal</h2>
 <p class="paragraph">In particular, the new anti-money laundering law prohibits certain thresholds for cash payments and any anonymous crypto payment. On that note, any cash payment above €10,000 will become illegal, while also anonymous cash payments above €3,000.</p>
 <p class="paragraph">The prohibition for payments made in cryptocurrencies will be specific from unidentified self-custody wallets to service providers, as stated in the legislation.</p>
 <figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img decoding="async" width="1024" height="666" src="https://cdn.thebittimes.com/images/2024/03/24/a9c8fe278d47aa966e719027fccd033f.webp" alt class="wp-image-163146" srcset="https://cdn.thebittimes.com/images/2024/03/24/a9c8fe278d47aa966e719027fccd033f.webp 1024w, https://cdn.thebittimes.com/images/2024/03/24/a9c8fe278d47aa966e719027fccd033f.webp 300w, https://cdn.thebittimes.com/images/2024/03/24/a9c8fe278d47aa966e719027fccd033f.webp 768w, https://cdn.thebittimes.com/images/2024/03/24/a9c8fe278d47aa966e719027fccd033f.webp 1200w" sizes="(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px">
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   Page 23 of European Parliament’s AML legislation. Source: <em>European Parliament</em>
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 <p class="paragraph">Furthermore, the now-approved AML package will apply after three years from its entry into force, according to Dillon Eustace. However, the Ireland law firm expects these laws to become fully operational before the usual enforcement timeline.&nbsp;</p>
 <h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-patrick-breyer-s-position-on-making-anonymous-cash-and-crypto-payments-illegal">Patrick Breyer’s position on making anonymous cash and crypto payments illegal</h3>
 <p class="paragraph">Breyer is skeptical about the effectiveness of fighting crimes through these laws. Moreover, he highlighted how anonymous <a rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" title="payment" href="https://thebittimes.com/tag/payment.html">payment</a>s are a fundamental human right, needed to achieve individual financial freedom.</p>
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  <p class="paragraph">“Generally prohibiting anonymous <a rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" title="payment" href="https://thebittimes.com/tag/payment.html">payment</a>s would at best have minimal effects on crime, but it would deprive innocent citizens of their financial freedom. (…) We have a right to pay and donate online without our personal transactions being recorded.”</p> <cite>– Patrick Breyer</cite>
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 <p class="paragraph">From another perspective, the Piraten Partei’s representative pointed out to the negative economic and social effects of prohibiting sovereign payments.</p>
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  <p class="paragraph">“This EU war on cash will have nasty repercussions! For thousands of years, societies around the world have lived with privacy-protecting cash. With the creeping abolition of cash, there is a threat of negative interest rates and the risk of banks cutting off the money supply at any time. Dependence on banks is increasing at an alarming rate. This kind of financial disenfranchisement must be stopped.”</p> <cite>– Patrick Breyer</cite>
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    <p lang="en" dir="ltr">EU Committee approves:<br>Prohibition of cash <a rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" title="payment" href="https://thebittimes.com/tag/payment.html">payment</a>s over €10,000<br>Prohibition of anonymous cash <a rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" title="payment" href="https://thebittimes.com/tag/payment.html">payment</a>s over €3,000<br>₿ Prohibition of anonymous <a rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" title="crypto" href="https://thebittimes.com/tag/crypto.html">crypto</a> <a rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" title="payment" href="https://thebittimes.com/tag/payment.html">payment</a>s to hosted wallets without any threshold<br><br>This means war on cash and gradual erosion of our financial freedom!… pic.twitter.com/gwznD4QZop</p>— Patrick Breyer #JoinMastodon (@echo_pbreyer) March 21, 2024
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 <h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-what-do-eu-citizens-think-about-aml-prohibiting-cash-and-crypto-payments">What do EU citizens think about AML prohibiting cash and crypto payments?</h3>
 <p class="paragraph">Historically, European citizens have already shown resistance against cash payment prohibition of any kind. Patrick Breyer described a “great public outcry” in 2017 when the Commission consulted the public about limiting cash payments.</p>
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  <p class="paragraph">In his words, “More than 90% of responding citizens spoke out against such a step. Respondents considered paying anonymously in cash an “essential personal freedom” and that “Restrictions on payments in cash are ineffective in achieving the potential objectives (fight against criminal activities, terrorism, tax evasion).”</p>
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 <p class="paragraph">Additionally, the shadow economy expert Friedrich Schneider believes these measures would have “only minimal lowering effects on crime.”</p>
 <h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-conclusion">Conclusion</h2>
 <p class="paragraph">In conclusion, the new anti-money laundering law will effectively prohibit cryptocurrency payments through self-custody wallets.</p>
 <p class="paragraph">Essentially, most crypto networks operate in permissionless networks, where anyone can generate a cryptographic private key, gaining unlimited access to the system. This is one of the core value propositions of cryptocurrencies, as a more accessible, free, and fair approach to finances, which makes no distinction of any kind on its users.&nbsp;</p>
 <p class="paragraph">Experts and freedom advocates consider this recent approval a tough hit against financial freedom and fundamental human rights. On X (formerly Twitter), commentators talk about the resemblance to the dystopic society introduced by George Orwell in the best-seller “1984.”</p>
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    <p lang="en" dir="ltr">The EU just enacted some pretty Orwellian anti-privacy laws regarding cash and crypto.<br><br>Make no mistake, this is very bad! <br><br>But it's not (yet) as doomsday as many people have been saying, and there are some silver linings. <br><br>WHAT DOES THE NEW LAW SAY?<br><br>(if I got any of this… pic.twitter.com/ryHVPPEXjk</p>— Joel Valenzuela (@TheDesertLynx) March 23, 2024
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 <p class="paragraph">European citizens and entrepreneurs now wonder if the EU Parliament will have the political strength needed to sustain this approval moving forward.</p>
 <p class="paragraph"><em>*Story updated to add relevant information for the readers.</em></p>
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<p>Source: <a rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" target="_blank" href="https://thebittimes.com/anonymous-crypto-wallet-payments-now-illegal-in-the-eu-tbt83372.html">https://thebittimes.com/anonymous-crypto-wallet-payments-now-illegal-in-the-eu-tbt83372.html</a></p>

Anonymous crypto wallet payments now illegal in the EU

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