A new provision being mooted by the Indian crypto exchanges will require users to reveal the identity of the person when transferring crypto to a private wallet, according to a report in The Economic Times. It is not mandatory to collect details nor is there a procedure presently, the report explained. It means that an exchange will permit a transfer only after collecting the identity of the receiver (who owns the private wallet) from the sender, the report added. An exchange is privy to the identities of buyers and sellers if they are clients of local exchanges owing to KYC measures. The platforms are deliberating on details like the kind of ID, how it would be collected, and evaluating their authenticity, among other things. There is no clarity on when the measure will be implemented by the exchanges. Why it matters: It is important to note this development as it can bring some trust and transparency to the crypto industry. The sector has been reeling in the wake of several disasters such as Terra and FTX. The measure can offer some credibility to exchanges and act as a bulwark against money laundering given that private wallets belong to foreign nationals usually. Bringing crypto entities under the PMLA’s (Prevention of Money-laundering Act, 2002) ambit: It was only recently that the Indian government subjected every transaction related to crypto assets to India’s money laundering laws, according to a notification put out on March 7, 2023. It means that all crypto exchanges and…
