[from the Bank for International Settlements]
An Approach to Anti-Money Laundering Compliance for Cryptoassets
BIS Bulletin № 111 (13 August 2025)
by Iñaki Aldasoro, Jon Frost, Sang Hyuk Lim, Fernando Perez-Cruz & Hyun Song Shin
Key takeaways
- Existing anti-money laundering (AML) approaches relying on trusted intermediaries have limited effectiveness with decentralized record-keeping in permissionless public blockchains.
- The public transaction history on blockchains can enable AML and other compliance efforts, such as FX regulations, by leveraging the provenance and history of any particular unit or balance of a cryptoasset, including stablecoins.
- An AML compliance score based on the likelihood that a particular cryptoasset unit or balance is linked with illicit activity may be referenced at points of contact with the banking system (“off-ramps”), preventing inflows of the proceeds of illicit activity and supporting a culture of “duty of care” among crypto market participants.
Read the full article [archived PDF]
Macroeconomic Impact of Tariffs and Policy Uncertainty
BIS Bulletin № 110 (12 August 2025)
by Emanuel Kohlscheen, Phurichai Rungcharoenkitkul, Dora Xia & Fabrizio Zampolli
Key takeaways
- Tariffs affect economies most directly through trade volume and prices. Tariffs lower output growth everywhere, though the magnitude varies by country and scenario. They also tend to raise inflation, most notably in the imposing countries.
- Tariffs have indirect effects, including exchange rate shifts, supply chain disruptions, trade diversion and heightened uncertainty. These could worsen growth and inflation effects as well as the policy trade-offs central banks face.
- If it proves persistent, trade policy uncertainty could depress domestic demand and put global growth at risk.
Read the full article [archived PDF]