Crypto forensics firm Chainalysis has partnered with Lendingblock, the institutional lending exchange for digital assets. Chainalysis will provide AML/KYC technology to Lendingblock.
Lendingblock allows hedge funds, exchanges, asset managers, etc. to find liquidity and facilitate strategies, in the digital asset sector. Lendingblock is regulated by the Gibraltar Financial Services Commission. The company says it is “adopting global best practices from the traditional capital markets space where regulation of digital assets is forthcoming.”
The move is strategic as it is widely expected that global regulatory guidance from the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) is forthcoming. Some industry insiders expect FATFs guidance will place additional burdens on the crypto sector. Some believe this regulatory burden will be excessive.
By partnering with Chainalysis, Lendingblock said it is augmenting existing in-house KYC standards and enforcing due diligence processes, thus protecting its institutional client base while also supporting the progression of regulatory frameworks.
Lendingblock says it is “proactively establishing strong anti-money laundering (AML) and combating the financing of terrorism (CFT) procedures, companies like Lendingblock will be prepared for regulatory enforcement and stay ahead of the competition.”
“We are beginning to see the cryptocurrency community preparing for an influx of enforcement actions and regulatory guidance over the coming months,” commented Jonathan Levin, Co-founder and COO, Chainalysis. “Exchanges like Lendingblock are positioning themselves ahead of the curve by putting these procedures in place now to support clients globally.”
Steve Swain, CEO of Lendingblock, said it is important to create a secure and transparent lending exchange that not only meets the needs of our regulator but also one that our institutional clients trust.
Chainalysis reports that its “KYT” is being used by approximately 110 cryptocurrency businesses and financial institutions in 35 countries.
In April, Chainalysis closed its $36 million Series B round led by Accel with participation from Benchmark, Sozu, and MUFG.