Coinbase-Backed Anti-Money Laundering Group Expands Into Europe

The Coinbase-backed cryptocurrency anti-money laundering (AML) group, the Travel Rule Universal Solution Technology (TRUST), has expanded into Europe.

TRUST, which was originally kick-started in the U.S. by the Coinbase (COIN) crypto exchange with help from BitGo, Gemini, Kraken and Fidelity, said earlier this year it had established a footing in Canada and Singapore. As part of its European advancement, the TRUST membership has grown to 67 firms, according to a press release.

Back in mid-2019, the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) ordered crypto service providers to meet its AML guidance, which meant exchanges, trading desks and custodians had to transfer personally identifiable information about their customers along with crypto transactions over a certain threshold.

That FATF action has become known as the Travel Rule.

TRUST, which is one of a number of approaches to crypto AML, is now emerging as the consortium with the most industry weight behind it.

Sascha Rangoonwala, Coinbase's head of its Germany operations, said TRUST now has members from Germany, the U.K., Switzerland, Ireland, Lithuania, Austria and the Netherlands.

“The expansion of the TRUST coalition to Europe marks a significant milestone in Coinbase’s journey to become the global industry-standard solution for Travel Rule compliance,” Rangoonwala said in an email. “Our rapid expansion is a result of TRUST’s ability to adapt to different jurisdictions' Travel Rule requirements while also prioritizing customer privacy and security.”

Read more: The Perverse Impacts of the Anti-Money-Laundering System