AUSTRAC Cancels 45 Remittance and Crypto Registrations Over Compliance Concerns

Highlights:

• AUSTRAC removed 45 remittance and crypto service registrations over the past year amid tighter compliance scrutiny.
• The regulator cited inactive businesses, registration failures, insolvency, and money laundering risks among key enforcement reasons.
• AUSTRAC also cancelled GetCoins’ registration and recently targeted Western Union and Cryptolink over financial crime concerns.

Australia’s financial intelligence regulator has removed 45 remittance and virtual asset service provider registrations over the past year as it steps up oversight of businesses exposed to money laundering and financial crime risks.

The Australian Transaction Reports and Analysis Centre (AUSTRAC) announced the action on September 7. The regulator said it had cancelled or suspended registrations, or refused renewals, across remittance providers and virtual asset service providers (VASPs). Businesses whose registrations were cancelled can no longer operate under those registrations.

🚨 ICYMI: Regulatory pressure is rising in Australia.

AUSTRAC has canceled, suspended, or refused 45 registrations in the past year, citing inactive firms, reporting failures, and money-laundering risks.

Businesses that lose registration can no longer operate legally.

Are… pic.twitter.com/lLg1RP6dtB

— The Moon Show (@TheMoonShow) September 8, 2026

AUSTRAC CEO Brendan Thomas said cross-border payments require close attention because money can move quickly between countries. “The rapid movement of money across borders can create some of the highest ML/TF risks,” Thomas said.

AUSTRAC Targets Businesses Failing Compliance Requirements

AUSTRAC said the enforcement actions covered several types of compliance and operational problems. Some businesses lacked the capacity to start or continue operating, while others were dormant, inactive or had stopped providing regulated services for extended periods.

Other cases involved insolvency, incorrect registration, failures to inform AUSTRAC about material business changes or significant money laundering and terrorism financing risks. In some cases, the regulator also referred people connected to cancelled businesses to Australian or overseas law enforcement and regulatory agencies.

The measures are part of AUSTRAC’s broader effort to strengthen anti-money laundering and counter-terrorism financing (AML/CTF) controls across high-risk payment services. For crypto businesses, VASP registration allows regulated providers offering certain virtual asset services to operate within Australia’s AML/CTF framework. Losing that registration can therefore prevent a provider from continuing the affected services.

GetCoins Registration Cancelled After Scam Concerns

AUSTRAC also detailed its action against BA Digital Ventures Pty Ltd, which traded as GetCoins. The regulator worked with Australia’s National Anti-Scam Centre after receiving customer complaints about the business.

AUSTRAC requested information from GetCoins to assess whether the company could properly manage its money laundering risks. According to the regulator, the platform was allegedly exploited as part of organised cryptocurrency investment scams. AUSTRAC said cancelling the registration helped disrupt the related scam activity. The GetCoins case puts cryptocurrency investment scams alongside broader AML/CTF concerns as a growing focus for Australian regulators.

AUSTRAC Steps Up Action Against High-Risk Crypto and Remittance Firms

The latest removals follow several recent AUSTRAC actions involving high-risk payment channels. On September 1, the regulator launched an investigation into Western Union over concerns about how the company manages higher-risk payment channels, customers and affiliates. The investigation relates to Western Union Financial Services Australia and The Western Union Company, rather than its affiliates.

AUSTRAC also suspended Cryptolink’s VASP registration in August, forcing its network of 96 cryptocurrency ATMs offline for three months. The regulator cited concerns over high-risk transactions and reporting obligations.

🚨 JUST IN: 🇦🇺Australia orders all 96 Cryptolink Bitcoin ATMs OFFLINE for 3 months over anti-money laundering failures.

AUSTRAC says the company missed basic transaction reporting requirements and ignored requests for info.

Comes after Cryptolink already paid a $56,340 fine in… pic.twitter.com/hiNB6Pmlbm

— CoinMarginalX (@CoinMarginalX) August 10, 2026

Thomas said AUSTRAC will continue identifying businesses that fail to meet registration requirements or present serious money laundering and terrorism financing risks. The regulator has also warned payment and crypto companies that managing financial crime risks and meeting reporting obligations are necessary to continue operating in Australia.