Dutch Central Bank says 39 firms applied to offer crypto services. In order to provide cryptocurrency services, De Nederlandsche Bank NV (DNB) has begun to formally register companies.
As a consequence of the introduction of the fifth EU Anti-Money Laundering Directive (5AMLD), providers of exchange services between cryptocurrencies, fiat currencies and providers of custodial wallets are expected to apply to the central bank for registration. They must show compliance with the Money Laundering and Terrorist Funding (Prevention) Act and the 1977 Sanctions Act provisions.
The 5AMLD implementation went into effect on May 21 in the Netherlands. Since then, cryptocurrency service providers can only carry out their activities if they are included in the public register of the central bank.
A spokesperson for the Dutch central bank said “So far we received 39 applications.” According to the public register on the central bank’s website, four companies have been granted registration to offer crypto services. They are Rotterdam-based 2525 Ventures, Amsterdam-based Amdax, Nijmegen-based Blox, and Veghel-based Phoenix Payments.
The central bank “only supervises compliance with the Money Laundering and Terrorist Financing (Prevention) Act and the Sanctions Act 1977,” it explained. “The registered companies are not subject to the prudential supervision of DNB or the conduct supervision of the AFM [Authority for the Financial Markets]. This means that financial business risks are not monitored and there is no specific financial consumer protection.”
[image: Azhar J]
