European Union Plans Privacy Token Ban—What It Means for Crypto in 2027 – Crypto News Flash

Starting in 2027, the European Union is poised to enforce sweeping anti-money laundering measures that, essentially, will ban privacy-oriented cryptocurrency and

The European Union is set to introduce sweeping anti-money laundering (AML) measures in 2027, which will essentially ban privacy-oriented cryptocurrency and anonymous crypto accounts as part of the forthcoming EU AMLR, the new EU financial transparency regime.

Crypto: No Anonymous Accounts, Says AML Handbook

According to the AML Handbook by the European Crypto Initiative (EUCI), Article 79 of the AMLR will place a strong ban on anonymous accounts.

According to the AML Handbook by the European Crypto Initiative (EUCI), Article 79 of the AMLR will place a strong ban on anonymous accounts.

“Credit institutions, financial institutions, and crypto-asset service providers shall not maintain anonymous accounts, in any form, with any person or entity, or any arrangements enabling transactions to be made without the possibility of identifying the natural person or persons who carries out the transaction or for which the account is opened.”

This will also include any tools or platforms used to facilitate the anonymisation of transactions. Specifically, the legislation mentions “crypto-asset accounts allowing the anonymisation of transactions” and “accounts using anonymity-enhancing coins.”

The broader legislation is part of a wider legislative trio comprising the Anti-Money Laundering Directive (AMLD), the Anti-Money Launderening Authority Regulation (AMLAR), and the Anti-Money Laundering Regulation (AMLR) as part of efforts to strengthen the EU’s financial surveillance capacity both in the traditional and digital environment, as we previously reported.

Aspects Of Legislation Still Pending

While the legislation has now been passed, the more granular details of implementation are still being defined by delegated and implementing acts and to a large extent through the supervision of the European Banking Authority.

“This means that the EUCI is still actively working on these level two acts by providing feedback to the public consultations, as some of the implementation details are yet to be finalized,” said Vyara Savova, senior policy lead at EUCI.

However, she added that despite the pending specifics, the framework itself is now set, and centralized crypto platforms operating under the Markets in Crypto-Assets Regulation (MiCA) must begin adjusting their policies accordingly.

“The broader framework is final, so centralized crypto projects (CASPs under MiCA) need to keep it in mind when determining their internal processes and policies. For instance, they need to adjust their internal policies to align with the new legislation.”

Beyond asset restrictions, the regulation will also increase scrutiny of crypto firms operating within the EU. CASPs that maintain operations in six or more member states will fall under direct oversight by the new Anti-Money Laundering Authority (AMLA).

A phased selection process will commence on July 1, 2027, with an initial focus on 40 firms—ensuring at least one per member state. Later phases will sweep in additional CASPs based on criteria like transaction volume and customer numbers.

The AML Handbook notes that AMLA will apply “materiality thresholds” to identify which CASPs qualify for direct supervision. These include CASPs serving “a minimum of 20,000 customers residing in the host member state.”

Another criterion is concerning annual transactions. It stated that APLIC is to select at least one CASP per member state based on a “phased approach taking into account the volume of transactions. In practice, this will be a minimum of EUR 50 billion in total annual transactions.”

Additionally, customer identity checks will become mandatory for all crypto transactions above €1,000. Moreover, institutions will be required to report suspicious transactions to AMLA.