Bittrex to pay $29M for BSA violations in landmark FinCEN, OFAC case

Virtual currency trading platform Bittrex agreed to pay more than $29 million for violations of the Bank Secrecy Act (BSA) and other foreign asset restrictions by regularly allowing transactions with customers in Iran, Syria, and other U.S.-sanctioned nations.

The penalty, assessed Tuesday by the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) and Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC), follows investigations by the Treasury Department agencies that uncovered “willful” violations of the BSA’s anti-money laundering (AML) rules and suspicious activity reporting (SAR) requirements. Bittrex admitted FinCEN’s findings in agreeing to a consent order.

“These enforcement actions emphasize to the virtual currency industry the importance of implementing appropriate risk-based sanctions compliance controls and meeting obligations under the BSA,” the Treasury said in a press release.