India tightens crypto noose: Live selfies mandatory

New Delhi: In an effort to eliminate illegal activity in the digital asset market, India’s Financial Intelligence Unit (FIU) has unveiled stringent new Anti-Money Laundering (AML) and Know Your Customer (KYC) protocols for cryptocurrency exchanges, including mandatory liveness detection and geographical tracking during the onboarding process. The updated guidelines, issued on January 8 and accessed by PTI, classify crypto exchanges as Virtual Digital Asset (VDA) service providers who will now have to do more than just allow simple document uploads. Under the new rules, users must take a “live selfie” using software that verifies their presence, typically through eye-blinking or head movement. The measure helps prevent the use of static photos or deepfakes. Exchanges must record the exact latitude and longitude, date, timestamp, and IP address from which a user starts creating an account. The “penny-drop” method, which involves processing a nominal Re 1 transaction to confirm that the bank account is active and belongs to the registrant, is required. In addition to a Permanent Account Number (PAN), users must provide a secondary ID such as a Passport, Aadhaar or a Voter ID, along with an OTP verification for the email ID and phone number. The FIU, which operates under the Union Finance Ministry, is taking a tough stance against tools meant to conceal the paper trail of crypto wealth. The new guidelines aim to “strongly discourage” Initial Coin Offerings (ICOs) and Initial Token Offerings (ITOs) due to their lack of economic justification and high risk.