Eurogroup President Paschal Donohoe recently spoke at the European Anti-Financial Crime Summit 2025 in Dublin, where he discussed the EU’s plans to track crypto transfers for increased transparency. The proposed plan involves reclassifying performance transfer mechanisms to record data on both senders and recipients of funds, specifically targeting crypto asset service providers.
Donohoe emphasized the importance of broadening financial regulation to address transparency issues within the crypto industry. He highlighted the need to strengthen the EU’s rules on anti-money laundering (AML) and countering terrorism financing, particularly through the new EU anti-money laundering authority (AMLA) rule.
The European Commission adopted a regulation in May 2023 aimed at making transfers of crypto-assets more transparent and traceable. This regulation will also restrict crypto firms from interacting with anonymous wallets and privacy coins starting July 1, 2027, with regulators blocking the IP addresses of non-compliant decentralized exchanges.
While the AMLR law applies to all crypto-asset service providers, it is not solely a crypto regulation but encompasses all financial institutions. Some industry experts, like Patrick Hansen from Circle and James Toledano from Unity Wallet, have raised concerns about the potential impact of these regulations on decentralized finance (DeFi) and the global nature of self-custodial crypto transactions.
Overall, the EU’s efforts to track crypto transactions aim to enhance transparency and combat financial crime within the digital asset space. However, balancing regulatory oversight with the innovative and decentralized nature of cryptocurrencies remains a challenge for policymakers and industry stakeholders alike.