Austin Campbell, CEO of WSPN, expressed his views on anti-money laundering (AML) regulations in the traditional financial system. He said that these regulations do not effectively prevent financial crime but believes that the use of stablecoins by financial institutions could result in a reduction of such crimes. Campbell shared his thoughts in a February 26 post on X.
"This would be a major concern for me if the current AML regime did anything to stop crime," said Campbell. "Freeze and seize stablecoins are likely used for crime less often than the mainstream system, it is likely a move to stablecoins will reduce financial crime."
Bank of America CEO Brian Moynihan addressed the potential launch of a stablecoin by the bank during a recent speech at the Economic Club of Washington, D.C., as reported by CoinTelegraph. "If they make that legal, we will go into that business," Moynihan said. Several members of Congress have proposed regulatory frameworks for stablecoins, including the GENIUS Act and the Clarity for Payment Stablecoins Act of 2024.
The GENIUS Act was introduced earlier this month by Senator Bill Hagerty and aims to establish a regulatory framework for payment stablecoins, according to Federal Newswire. The legislation outlines definitions for stablecoins, procedures for issuers to obtain licenses, reserve requirements, and supervisory regimes with clear limitations. Campbell previously commented to Federal Newswire that he thinks the bill "is excellent" and highlighted its solid reserve framework and sensible regulation thresholds.
U.S. authorities have imposed fines on several major banks for failing to maintain AML protections or enabling sanctions evasions. In 2019, U.S. and UK authorities fined Standard Chartered Bank $1.1 billion for processing transactions for sanctioned countries like Syria and Iran. In 2012, HSBC Holdings faced a $1.9 billion fine from U.S. officials for facilitating Mexican drug cartels’ laundering activities.
According to the Cato Institute, approximately $8.6 billion was laundered via cryptocurrency in 2021, compared to a total of approximately $2.6 trillion laundered globally that year.
Campbell became CEO of WSPN US in October, as per LinkedIn information. He also serves as an adjunct professor at New York University’s Stern School of Business and is the founder of Zero Knowledge Consulting. His previous work experience includes positions at JP Morgan Chase and Citi.
