G-20 chiefs urge countries to start implementing Crypto policies set by FATF

The G20 has advised countries to implement the crypto standards set by the Financial Action Task Force (FATF).

During a meeting held this weekend at Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, G-20 finance chiefs said: “Building on the 2019 Leaders’ Declaration, we urge countries to implement the recently adopted Financial Action Task Force (FATF) standards on virtual assets and related providers.”

In June last year, the FAFT released the last batch of crypto guidelines for countries to adopt. It stipulates that exchanges will be responsible for the collection and transfer of customer information during transactions. The customers’ information will include details about their location, their account number, and their full names. Part of the information will also list the details of the originator’s beneficiary and their account numbers.

Members already pledged to implement policy

In July last year, the G-20 members supported the policy, with several member countries pledging to implement the provisions in the policy from this year.

At the meeting in Riyadh, the chiefs revisited the commitment they made in October regarding stablecoins, pointing out that such projects will be reevaluated before any further action is taken.

G-20 chiefs reiterated,

We recognize the need to enhance global cross-border payment arrangements to facilitate lower-cost and swifter transfers, including for remittances. We ask the FSB [Financial Stability Board], in coordination with the Committee on Payments and Market Infrastructures (CPMI) and other relevant standard-setting bodies and international organizations, to develop a roadmap to enhance global cross-border payment arrangements by October 2020.

The G-20 members have been seriously working on modalities to solve the regulatory issues of stablecoins. And many member countries are expecting a regulatory update when the next G-20 meeting holds in April this year.

When central bank governors and the G-20 finance ministers held their G-20 meeting last week, they discussed stablecoins and cryptocurrencies. They also pointed out that the Fiscal Stability Board is going to provide a crypto regulatory response for countries that want to implement the cryptocurrency regulation in their respective countries.

G20 discusses crypto regulation

One of the major agenda in the G20 meeting is on the regulation of cryptocurrency. Apart from the regulation of cryptocurrencies, there were issues raised concerning stablecoins, such as Facebook’s Libra.

On the second day of the meeting, the finance chiefs stated that “global economic growth is expected to pick up modestly in 2020 and 2021.” They also stated, “We will enhance global risk monitoring, including the recent outbreak of COVID-19 coronavirus disease.”

The G-20 will be waiting for reports from international bodies, such as the FAFT, the International Monetary Fund (IMF), and the Financial Stability Board (FSB).

From the reports, the G-20 chiefs can make a decision regarding the control and regulation of cryptocurrencies and stablecoins.