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Terrorist groups who have been excluded from the \u201cformal financial system\u201d are slowly turning to crypto to fund their heinous activities, according to Svetlana Martynova, the Countering Financing of Terrorism Coordinator at the United Nations (UN).\u00a0<\/p>\n
The UN official made the comments during a speech at a \u201cSpecial Meeting\u201d run by the UN\u2019s Counter-Terrorism Committee (CTC) in New Delhi and Mumbai on Oct. 28-29, which was focused<\/a> on combating the use of \u201cnew and emerging technologies\u201d for terrorist purposes.<\/p>\n Martynova said that while cash and hawala \u2014 a traditional system of transferring money in Arab countries and South Asia \u2014 have been the \u201cpredominant methods\u201d of terror financing. \u201cWe know terrorists adapt to the evolution of conditions around them and as technologies evolve they adapt as well,\u201d she said.\u00a0<\/p>\n Martynova noted that\u00a0these technologies include cryptocurrencies<\/a>, which have been used to \u201ccreate opportunities for abuse,\u201d she said, adding:<\/p>\n \u201cIf they\u2019re excluded from the formal financial system and they want to purchase or invest in something with anonymity, and they\u2019re advanced for that, they\u2019re likely to abuse cryptocurrencies.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres also stated that while emerging technologies have an \u201cunmatched potential to improve human conditions everywhere,\u201d the harm done also expands far beyond that of terror financing:<\/p>\n \u201cTerrorists and others posing hateful ideologies are abusing new and emerging technologies to spread disinformation, foment discord, recruit and radicalize, mobilize resources and execute attacks.\u201d <\/p><\/blockquote>\n As for how the UN plans on handling the issue at an international level, Martynova said the main challenge is to get nation-states on board with its regulation.<\/p>\n \u201cWe have very clear global standards from the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) and the resolutions of UNSC,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n However, Martynova added that very few countries have started the work on regulation, and even less so are \u201csuccessfully enforcing that regulation\u201d to deter ill-intended non-state actors.<\/p>\n Related: <\/em><\/strong>Terrorists still raise money through crypto, but the impact is limited<\/em><\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n Some efforts are being made at the state level, with the United States Department of the Treasury most notably sanctioning crypto mixer<\/a> Tornado Cash over money laundering and cybercrime concerns.\u00a0<\/p>\n A number of blockchain-based forensic firms such as Chainalysis and Elliptic have also come about in recent years to track down cybercriminals and report their activities to governments<\/a>,\u00a0which has helped fade away the myth that cryptocurrency is a criminal\u2019s safe haven. <\/p>\n<\/div>\n