[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":274},["ShallowReactive",2],{"news-bitcoin-training-at-romanian-american-university-10":3,"news-bitcoin-training-at-romanian-american-university-10-similar":39,"i-heroicons:arrow-left-20-solid":269},[4],{"id":5,"status":6,"date_created":7,"date_updated":8,"title":9,"type":10,"body":11,"date":12,"topic":13,"slug":14,"activity":15,"nid":16,"topics":17,"activities":18,"programme":19,"area":19,"websites":20,"language":19,"image":22,"translation_of":19,"countries":33,"tags":34,"authors":35,"images":36,"translations":37,"content":38},9917,"published","2022-05-26T22:57:26.000Z","2025-08-31T23:14:59.000Z","Bitcoin training at Romanian-American University","","In response to the recent wave of new electronic payment methods, including cryptocurrencies, the International Centre for Asset Recovery (ICAR) has developed [training on money laundering using cryptocurrencies](https:\u002F\u002Fforum.assetrecovery.org\u002Ftraining\u002FMoney_Laundering_using_Bitcoin), particularly Bitcoin.\n\nAt the invitation of the [Romanian-American University](http:\u002F\u002Fwww.ro-am.ro\u002F) in Bucharest, ICAR trainers delivered training on “Money Laundering using Cryptocurrencies and International Co-operation” for students during 27–29 November 2018.\n\nRegistration for the course had to be closed early due to the great deal of interest it attracted. It also marked the beginning of a promising collaboration between the university and the Basel Institute. The 42 participants came from various schools such as Law, Computer Science of Business Management, Domestic and International Business, Banking and Finance, Domestic and International Economy of Tourism and Management-Marketing.\n\n### Why is training in cryptocurrencies important?\n\nDigital currencies or cryptocurrencies, including Bitcoin, have the potential to make it easier for criminals to hide the source of their proceeds and move funds across borders without detection. It is increasingly essential for investigators, prosecutors and others to understand Bitcoin in order to help investigate its use for criminal objectives and recover the proceeds of crime held abroad. \n\n### About the Bitcoin workshop\n\nDuring the workshop, students learned how effective money laundering investigations are conducted where the proceeds of crime are laundered using cryptocurrencies. Common misconceptions regarding Bitcoin – such as its perceived anonymity, lack of intrinsic value, and difficulties in tracing transactions – were addressed.\n\nStudents also explored the peculiarities of a decentralised system, in particular when applied to financial systems. Important building blocks of blockchain technology were explored, with students learning how Bitcoin addresses are generated and transactions are managed. They also downloaded a Bitcoin Wallet that helped them understand transactions and, ultimately, use them to confiscate Bitcoins.\n\n### “Following the money” using blockchain\n\nIn keeping with ICAR’s hands-on approach to training, the students conducted a simulated investigation in which the proceeds of crime are laundered using Bitcoins. The students successfully followed the trail of money back to its source by analysing the blockchain.\n\n### Growing demand for cryptocurrency training\n\nThe high level of interest from students in learning about Bitcoin and money laundering reflects fast-growing demand from all sectors for training in blockchain technologies, cryptocurrencies and money laundering. In addition to ICAR's training courses aimed at investigators, prosecutors and reprentatives of Financial Investigation Units, the Basel Institute also runs a popular [Blockchain and AML training course for FinTech and compliance professionals](https:\u002F\u002Fwww.baselgovernance.org\u002Fnode\u002F7054). To find out more, contact [federico.paesano@baselgovernance.org](mailto:federico.paesano@baselgovernance.org).","2018-11-29",[10],"bitcoin-training-at-romanian-american-university-10",[10],10,[],[],null,[21],"Main page",{"id":23,"storage":24,"filename_disk":25,"filename_download":26,"title":9,"type":27,"created_on":28,"modified_on":28,"charset":19,"filesize":29,"width":30,"height":31,"duration":19,"embed":19,"description":19,"location":19,"tags":19,"metadata":32,"focal_point_x":19,"focal_point_y":19,"tus_id":19,"tus_data":19,"uploaded_on":28},"a18548a5-c79a-4965-95ab-bd0efcb53037","local","a18548a5-c79a-4965-95ab-bd0efcb53037.webp","tmp.webp","image\u002Fwebp","2025-05-12T21:23:23.000Z",65424,1400,932,{},[],[],[],[],[],[],[40,70,94,114,156,179,201,222,247],{"id":41,"body":42,"status":6,"type":43,"date":44,"slug":45,"title":46,"image":47,"countries":48,"topic":49,"activity":52,"tags":54,"nid":55,"topics":56,"activities":58,"authors":59,"images":61,"websites":62,"area":19,"programme":19,"language":19,"translations":63,"translation_of":19,"user_created":64,"date_created":65,"user_updated":66,"date_updated":67,"content":68,"link":69},9835,"The activities of the [International Centre for Asset Recovery](\u002Fnode\u002F25) (ICAR) in 2018 continued to have impact across all aspects of our core mission: to enable partner countries to investigate complex cases of corruption and money laundering, send criminals to jail and recover stolen assets stashed abroad.\n\nHowever, the amount of hard assets recovered – notably in 2018, the USD 16.5 million recovered with the assistance of our embedded experts in Peru – is just one part of a much wider picture. In line with our [Operational Strategy](\u002Fnode\u002F27) 2017–20 and the ICAR Theory of Change, we believe the lasting impact of ICAR’s work also lies in the softer assets gained along the way.\n\n### Building long-term capacity – the ripple effect\n\nThese softer assets include greater capacity among key anti-corruption officials and institutions, leading to stronger rule of law. In 2018, we trained over 500 officials in 10 countries on financial investigation and asset recovery, as well as new topics such as money laundering using Bitcoin. According to interviews in the context of our training impact assessment, participants have not only learned a lot but changed their practices at work as a result of our input. Staying in touch with them and supporting them with ad hoc advice is part and parcel of ensuring that training leads to sustainable results.\n\nA highlight of the year was our team of local ICAR-certified trainers in Tanzania, who have started rolling out our training programme to their colleagues across the country.\n\nSmoother inter-agency cooperation both domestically and internationally is another key goal of ICAR’s work, since complex financial crimes can only be tackled with a collective effort. Nearly half of the over 100 ongoing cases supported by ICAR experts advanced in 2018 thanks to inter-agency or international cooperation. This has already led to new initiatives to create inter-agency taskforces and international teams, which we will continue to support through 2019 and beyond.\n\n### Creating stronger systems for sustainable development\n\nA typical side effect of ICAR’s in-country case work – particularly where our experts are embedded in partner agencies working side by side with anti-corruption officials – is coming across procedural or policy gaps that make the lives of investigators and prosecutors difficult. When this leads to internal or government-wide reform, our practical insights can help ensure that policymaking is not just a copy-paste of international good practice but locally anchored and contextualised. \n\nOne example is Tanzania’s new international cooperation team within its Prevention and Combating of Corruption Bureau, set up during 2018 with ongoing advice and mentoring from ICAR experts to build on progress in intelligence-gathering from foreign jurisdictions.\n\nIn this way, we believe ICAR’s work in 2018 continues to impact our partner countries’ efforts far beyond recovering assets – as important as that is. It helps strengthen systems and leave a sustainable legacy to deter criminal activity, protect public funds and support the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals.\n\n### A multidisciplinary approach to tackle complex financial crimes\n\nComplementing our law enforcement and asset recovery-focused assistance, our country programmes are increasingly asked to respond to a growing trend – and need – to become more multidisciplinary in fighting crime. This means more practically connecting asset recovery with countries’ broader anti-corruption and governance agendas.\n\nAn example of that is our programme of work in Malawi, which benefits from additional funding from the UK Department for International Development. The scope has now expanded to include support to the review of the National Anti-Corruption Strategy, fresh engagements with the private sector and assistance with developing innovative research tools and corruption risk assessment strategies. Experts from the Basel Institute’s divisions for Collective Action, Compliance and Public Governance will join ICAR in driving this integrated, multi-faceted approach to combating corruption and building capacity to recover stolen assets.\n\n### Driving innovation in asset recovery techniques\n\nICAR’s flexibility and global network of experts, spanning former prosecutors, lawyers and financial investigators, has been instrumental in helping to introduce new and context-sensitive legislative and technical innovations to support our partner countries’ asset recovery efforts. 2018 saw the first successful use of plea bargaining in a high-profile case in Malawi, the introduction of a structured approach to unexplained wealth cases in Tanzania and the first use of international video evidence and intelligence from hawala transactions in Kenya. In Peru, ICAR experts have contributed significantly to the elaboration of improved non-conviction-based forfeiture legislation introduced in 2018.\n\nThis creative approach to maximising the potential of partner countries’ legislative systems aligns with research by the Basel Institute’s Public Governance team, which emphasises the importance of context in both understanding criminal behaviour and countering it.\n\n2018 at a glance\n----------------\n\n### General\n\n*   In Peru, participation in the recovery of USD 16.5 million in stolen assets from accounts in [Switzerland](https:\u002F\u002Fwww.baselgovernance.org\u002Fnews\u002Fswitzerland-return-usd-15-million-stolen-assets-peru-landmark-extrajudicial-agreement) and [Luxembourg](https:\u002F\u002Fwww.baselgovernance.org\u002Fperuvian-judiciary-confiscates-luxembourg-account-montesinos-arms-dealer) belonging to individuals linked to former Peruvian presidential advisor Vladimiro Montesinos. Learn more about ICAR’s work out of our Peru country office in 2018.\n*   Technical assistance and strategic advice on over [100 ongoing cases](\u002Fnode\u002F224) in 10 partner countries.\n*   Introduction in our partner countries of new legal practices including plea bargaining, non-conviction-based forfeiture and prosecuting for unexplained wealth, setup of new dedicated teams on intelligence and international cooperation, and establishment of multi-disciplinary asset recovery offices.\n\n### Training and eLearning\n\n*   [Training](https:\u002F\u002Fwww.baselgovernance.org\u002Fasset-recovery\u002Ftraining-programmes) of over 500 investigators, prosecutors and judges in Financial Investigation and Asset Recovery, Offshore Structures and Mutual Legal Assistance, Corruption in Infrastructure Projects and Procurement, Financial Interviewing Skills and a new course on Money Laundering using Bitcoin.\n*   Training programmes delivered in 10 countries: Azerbaijan, Indonesia, Malawi, Namibia, Tanzania, Peru, Romania, Serbia, Uganda and Ukraine.\n*   Supervision of training programmes delivered by [ICAR-certified local trainers](\u002Fnode\u002F90).\n*   Support to training initiatives led by partner organisations, including with Swiss law firm MME on [FinTech AML Compliance Training](\u002Fnode\u002F755), and with the [Romanian Journalism Development Network](https:\u002F\u002Fwww.baselgovernance.org\u002Fnews\u002Ffinal-workshop-mapping-and-visualising-cross-border-crime) on financial investigation for journalists as well as public and private sector investigators.\n*   Blended learning concept applied in Namibia, with an on-site training workshop based on the [Operational Analysis eLearning course](\u002Fnode\u002F80).\n*   Continued partnership with the Egmont Group on developing [eLearning modules](\u002Fnode\u002F26) for Financial Intelligence Units.\n\n### Digital tools\n\n*   Publication of seventh edition of the [Basel AML Index](\u002Fnode\u002F229), an independent ranking that assesses countries’ risk exposure to money laundering, with a record 11,500+ visitors to the Index website in the month of release.\n*   Development of the [Basel Open Intelligence](\u002Fnode\u002F36) tool for financial investigation, ready for launch in 2019.\n\n### Global policy dialogue\n\n*   Continued dissemination of the [Guidelines for the Efficient Recovery of Stolen Assets](https:\u002F\u002Fguidelines.assetrecovery.org\u002F) together with the Swiss Department of Foreign Affairs and StAR Initiative.\n*   Participation in the UNCAC Working Group on Asset Recovery and associated discussions in dedicated Expert Group Meetings on Corruption involving Vast Quantities of Assets.\n*   Support to the development of the Framework for the Return of Assets from Corruption and Crime ([FRACCK](\u002Fnode\u002F920)) agreement between Kenya, Jersey, Switzerland and the UK.\n*   Joint organisation of the 3rd [Global Conference on Criminal Finances and Cryptocurrencies](https:\u002F\u002Fwww.baselgovernance.org\u002Fnews\u002Fglobal-conference-criminal-finances-cryptocurrencies-kicks-europol) with Europol and Interpol.\n*   Support to the development of innovative practices for financial crime litigation as part of our membership in (and Secretariat role for) the [International Academy of Financial Crime Litigators](https:\u002F\u002Fwww.financialcrimelitigators.org\u002F).\n\n### Looking ahead – planned activities in 2019\n\n*   Seek to respond to demands for expanding institutional scope of ICAR in-country programmes to support a chain-linked approach to asset recovery.\n*   Continue to strengthen exchange of knowledge and practices among ICAR partner countries and beyond to promote continued innovation in asset recovery.\n*   Explore opportunities to use training programmes and case-based advice to strengthen inter-agency cooperation.\n*   Promote the dissemination of innovative legal practices from ICAR partner countries in international forums.\n\n### More info\n\nThis text appears in the Basel Institute's [Annual Report 2018](\u002Fnode\u002F959).\n\nFor a deeper discussion of the link between asset recovery and sustainable development, see the Basel Institute on Governance Working Paper 29: [Recovering assets in support of the SDGs – from soft to hard assets for development](\u002Fnode\u002F927).","Blog","2019-07-21","reflections-on-2018-international-centre-for-asset-recovery-952","Reflections on 2018: International Centre for Asset Recovery","https:\u002F\u002Fjam.baselgovernance.org\u002Fapi\u002Fassets\u002Ff4b6973a-a2ac-4de6-868e-91907e02b663?width=1000&height=650&format=webp&quality=80",[],[50,51],"Anti-Money Laundering","Asset Recovery",[53],"Reports",[],952,[50,57],"Asset Recovery and Enforcement",[53],[60],1266,[],[21],[],"03bebfd8-0b40-4a2a-820d-b9d9c13b9de6","2022-05-26T22:56:22.000Z","3d9ff205-1640-4f34-b5b6-86977f51bbd6","2026-05-29T22:21:58.000Z",[],"\u002Fresources\u002Fnews\u002Freflections-on-2018-international-centre-for-asset-recovery-952",{"id":71,"body":72,"status":6,"type":43,"date":73,"slug":74,"title":75,"image":76,"countries":77,"topic":78,"activity":79,"tags":81,"nid":82,"topics":83,"activities":84,"authors":85,"images":86,"websites":87,"area":19,"programme":19,"language":88,"translations":89,"translation_of":19,"user_created":64,"date_created":90,"user_updated":66,"date_updated":91,"content":92,"link":93},10537,"Experts from all sectors agree we need more effective, efficient tools to counter the criminal use of blockchain technologies such as crypto-assets. Can better standards for blockchain intelligence provide an answer?\n\nThis will be a major focus of the inaugural [Blockchain Intelligence Forum](https:\u002F\u002Fbaselgovernance.org\u002Fnode\u002F2758) to be held in Bucharest on 10 April 2025, as part of the Digital Innovation Summit Bucharest 2025, of which the Basel Institute is a supporting organisation.\n\nThis in-depth Q&A looks at the concept of blockchain intelligence and practical use cases, the quality of current blockchain intelligence and the need for recognised standards and professional training to build capabilities in the public and private sectors. \n\nThanks to Bogdan Vacusta (National Bank of Romania), Nico Di Gabriele (European Central Bank) and Victor Vevera (ICI Bucharest) for the insights. The views expressed are personal and may not be necessarily aligned with those of the institution of affiliation.\n\n### What is blockchain intelligence?\n\nBlockchain intelligence is the discipline of gathering, processing and analysing blockchain transaction data and combining it with off-chain information.\n\nThe aim is to provide a holistic package of intelligence for use by regulators, policymakers, financial institutions, law enforcement agencies and compliance professionals.\n\n### How is it different from blockchain analysis or crypto-asset tracing?\n\nBlockchain analysis and crypto-asset tracing are narrowly focused on a single source of crypto-asset flows. This is often misleading as it does not provide insights into the broader network of relationships.\n\nIn contrast, blockchain intelligence enables analysis of the duration, size, frequency and quality of transaction flows. It integrates that data with off-chain intelligence to provide a holistic overview of the operating environment.\n\nThis macro-level analysis of blockchain transaction behaviour empowers professionals to make better-informed decisions, while also facilitating granular insight into specific counterparties.\n\nAnother plus point is that blockchain intelligence uses empirically tested methods founded on objectively and independently verifiable data, such as supervisory reporting and public disclosures made by crypto-asset service providers and issuers.\n\n### How can blockchain intelligence aid the fight against financial crime?\n\nExisting blockchain tracing methods are useful for initial investigations. But their focus is too narrow to address systemic risks or combat sophisticated criminal organisations employing a variety of methods to circumvent financial controls.\n\nBlockchain intelligence allows analysis at both macro and micro levels. This helps to reveal the key nodes and weak points of illicit networks that facilitate financial crime – essential for law enforcement to dismantle them.\n\n### What are some use cases?\n\nBlockchain intelligence capabilities are particularly valuable for:\n\nRegulators and policymakers, to formulate and implement effective regulations and policies that enable actionable supervision and oversight of crypto assets, crypto-asset service providers and financial institutions.\n\n> For example, blockchain intelligence would have enabled the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) to uncover that crypto-asset lender Hodlnaut was secretly sending customer funds to the ultimately doomed Anchor Protocol. At the time, the [MAS had awarded Hodlnaut](https:\u002F\u002Fwww.bbc.com\u002Fnews\u002Fbusiness-63898729) an in-principle digital payment token license, making investments with the company appear safe and luring in even more retail investors.\n> \n> Blockchain intelligence could have enabled the monitoring of crucial Hodlnaut wallets, provided regulators insight into where the bulk of crypto-asset flows ended up and potentially prevented over USD 190 million worth of retail losses.\n\nFinancial institutions, to:\n\n*   establish the source of wealth for clients dealing in crypto assets;\n*   open new customer segments which, using current analytical methods, would be considered too risky;\n*   establish effective AML\u002FCFT frameworks for crypto assets; and\n*   provide banking services to both crypto-asset service providers and individuals safely.\n\nBlockchain intelligence also enables active monitoring and management of tokenised assets.\n\n> For example, [Paxos Trust LLC](https:\u002F\u002Fwww.dfs.ny.gov\u002Fconsumers\u002Falerts\u002FPaxos_and_Binance), holder of a BitLicense granted by the New York State Department of Financial Services, was an issuer of the dollar-backed stablecoin Binance USD (BUSD) on the Ethereum blockchain network.\n> \n> The cryptocurrency exchange Binance, however, also issued a “wrapped” and unregulated version of the BUSD stablecoin on its own blockchain, the BNB Smart Chain. It was unbacked by as much as USD 1.4 billion.\n> \n> The matter was ultimately [brought to light](https:\u002F\u002Fwww.bloomberg.com\u002Fnews\u002Farticles\u002F2023-01-10\u002Fbinance-bnb-acknowledges-past-flaws-in-managing-busd-peg-stablecoin-reserves) by a blockchain intelligence firm. Had Paxos had direct access to blockchain intelligence, they could have noticed that Binance was creating hypothecated versions of BUSD that were not adequately backed.\n> \n> Potentially billions of dollars’ worth of market manipulation and the reputational hit to the licensing regime could have been avoided.\n\nLaw enforcement, to enhance existing investigations and to uncover and establish relationships where none would otherwise have been noticed. Blockchain intelligence provides the capability to link off-chain investigations to blockchain transactions, providing a more comprehensive overview of the threat environment.\n\n> For example, a two-month-long [Forbes investigation](https:\u002F\u002Fwww.forbes.com\u002Fsites\u002Fjavierpaz\u002F2024\u002F10\u002F31\u002Fdid-digital-currency-group-profit-from-60-million-in-north-korean-crypto-money-laundering\u002F) using blockchain intelligence revealed how regulated venture capital firm Digital Currency Group benefited from a North Korean crypto money laundering scheme. A North Korean hacker outfit purportedly used crypto-asset mixing protocols including Railgun to launder stolen crypto, in violation of international sanctions. Through their investment in Railgun, Digital Currency Group and other investment firms received fees that were generated by the laundering.\n> \n> Blockchain intelligence could have detected these flows in real time and the money laundering activity could have been stopped in its tracks.\n\nCompliance professionals, to better understand the compliance risks posed by crypto assets in the context of overall customer due diligence and compliance verifications.\n\n> For example, a large Asian bank considered onboarding a client who had derived their funds from bitcoin mining. The bank used blockchain intelligence to establish that client’s source of funds, allaying suspicions and enabling it to onboard the client safely.\n\n### Should we be worried about the quality of blockchain intelligence currently?\n\nYes. Since there are currently no established or empirically tested standards, there is a real risk that inaccurate blockchain “intelligence” is presented as fact.\n\nTo prevent errors and misattribution, we need rigorous standards to test the integrity of blockchain intelligence. Users must also understand its limits and its role in the overall analysis process.\n\n### How do investigators and analysts currently do blockchain analysis?\n\nMany practitioners in the public and private sectors rely on commercial tools to trace transactions on the blockchain, but may lack understanding of how these operate or their limitations.\n\nThey may also simply rely on information that private blockchain tracing companies provide, with no means to independently verify the results and understand methodologies employed.\n\nThe information may be correct. But it’s a bit of a “black box” and the resulting blockchain intelligence may be of dubious quality – something that would never be accepted in traditional financial investigations.\n\n### Are you calling into question the quality of blockchain evidence used in court?\n\nYes. There are cases in the United States especially where the quality of the blockchain tracing methodologies has been questioned.\n\nFor example, in the case [_United States v. Sterlingov_](https:\u002F\u002Fcaselaw.findlaw.com\u002Fcourt\u002Fus-dis-crt-dis-col\u002F115886148.html?utm_source=chatgpt.com) in 2024, the defendant was charged with operating the crypto mixer the Bitcoin Fog to launder illicit crypto assets and evidence in the form of blockchain analysis was provided by Chainalysis. The defence argued that “the \\[g\\]overnment's ‘blockchain analysis’ is junk science.” “The problem is we have no data set, no scientific data set with which we can measure the reliability and the accuracy of this software”, they said. This has triggered [significant debate](https:\u002F\u002Ffortune.com\u002Fcrypto\u002F2024\u002F03\u002F13\u002Fblockchain-analysis-chainalysis-bitcoin-fog-law-enforcement\u002F).\n\nWhere the quality of evidence from the blockchain is questionable, it may be dismissed – or even worse, result in unjust outcomes and potentially the conviction of innocent defendants.\n\nFortunately, in most cases so far, other evidence existed that enabled the prosecution to secure a conviction beyond a reasonable doubt. \n\nThe quality of blockchain intelligence needs to be subjected to rigorous statistical evaluation and analysis. Where there is ambiguity, the burden to prove that adequate standards have been met should be on the party seeking to rely on the evidence.\n\n### How can law enforcement agencies build capabilities in blockchain intelligence?\n\nIt’s difficult!\n\n*   First, there are currently few options outside of commercial solutions. Training tends to focus on the specific solutions developed by the training provider.\n*   Second, when new staff are hired, especially in law enforcement and the public sector, these tend to be blockchain tracing experts who have gained their expertise using commercial tools. Again, this may lead to methodology bias.\n*   Third, the quality of available training varies significantly. Blockchain intelligence requires expertise in law, computer science and finance. Training courses rarely acknowledge the need to have at least a basic understanding of each of these fields.\n\nLast, currently expertise is tied to certifications issued by providers of commercial tools, with no independent means to test the knowledge and skills of existing or new staff.\n\n### What can be done to improve blockchain intelligence tools, training and quality?\n\nFor tools, there is a pressing need for public-private partnerships to develop independently verifiable blockchain intelligence solutions. This would give all users more options. Working with universities, research organisations and other academic institutions is a good starting point to determine the reliability of blockchain intelligence and further research new applications.\n\nFor training, we need non-commercial blockchain intelligence training programmes adhering to the highest standards, with inputs and best practices from both public and private sector stakeholders.\n\nFor qualifications and hiring, we recommend that the role of a blockchain analyst is professionalised and officially recognised in frameworks such as the European Skills, Competences, Qualifications and Occupations (ESCO) classification. For that, an independent accreditation process for recognised professionals needs to be established, involving stakeholders from different sectors including independent accreditation bodies.\n\nUnderlying all this is the need to develop global standards based on a deep body of research that acknowledges both the capabilities and the limitations of blockchain intelligence.\n\nA practical first step towards all of these goals is the creation of working groups of experts, academics and relevant organisations focused on the exchange and interoperability of blockchain intelligence, as well as on sharing technology and best practices.\n\n### Do initiatives to this end already exist?\n\nExamples of such initiatives in which we are personally involved include:\n\n*   The [Blockchain Intelligence Academy (BIA)](https:\u002F\u002Fbi.academy\u002F), whose mission is to develop “actionable, independent blockchain intelligence capability, in service of the truth by, placing “the integrity of blockchain intelligence above all else”. It evolved from a public-private partnership between ICI Bucharest and the Singapore-based blockchain intelligence firm ChainArgos. BIA is committed to developing training standards and is openly inviting all blockchain analytics providers to this initiative, as a key objective is to facilitate the use of various tools in training programs conducted by BIA.\n*   The [Blockchain Intelligence Professionals Association (BIPA)](https:\u002F\u002Fblockchaintelligence.com\u002F), which brings together practitioners in the field of blockchain technology. Its objective is to “establish a platform for dialogue, to facilitate training, sharing of expertise, good practice and to encourage new partnerships”. Bogdan Vacusta, the chairman of BIPA, is actively involved in facilitating interactions between blockchain analytics providers, with a key objective to facilitate public-private partnerships focused on standards and interoperability.\n\nBoth organisations are closely involved in the first ever Blockchain Intelligence Forum in Bucharest. Here, a special working group will be launched aimed at introducing a new occupation – Blockchain Analyst – into the Romanian and European classifications of occupations and qualifications.\n\nThe two initiatives are also exploring ways to provide blockchain intelligence accreditation that stakeholders globally respect and rely on.\n\n### Remind us: what is the dream? Our end goal?\n\nThe dream is to develop global standards of excellence for blockchain intelligence capabilities. Training is a top priority, to both strengthen the blockchain intelligence discipline and develop expertise that is less reliant on commercial blockchain tracing tools.\n\nOur end goal is to establish a globally recognised standard for blockchain intelligence skills and develop the capabilities of professionals accordingly to combat the rise in illicit finance and preserve market integrity. A clean market is a precondition for its stability and thus capacity to fulfil people’s needs.\n\nThe rapid growth of crypto-assets and the development of blockchain technology has seen an increase in their use to facilitate financial crime. This is why it’s more important than ever to provide a structured, robust and resilient framework to continually improve and train blockchain intelligence professionals. \n\n### Learn more\n\n*   Learn more about the [Blockchain Intelligence Forum](https:\u002F\u002Fbaselgovernance.org\u002Fnode\u002F2758) in Bucharest on 10 April 2025.","2025-03-04","unlocking-blockchain-intelligence-to-tackle-illicit-crypto-use-2773","Unlocking blockchain intelligence to tackle illicit crypto use","https:\u002F\u002Fjam.baselgovernance.org\u002Fapi\u002Fassets\u002Fe2246d66-616c-4b58-879f-528432a786a9?width=1000&height=650&format=webp&quality=80",[],[51],[80],"Insights",[],2773,[57],[80],[],[],[21],"English",[],"2025-03-04T17:01:37.000Z","2026-05-29T22:22:35.000Z",[],"\u002Fresources\u002Fnews\u002Funlocking-blockchain-intelligence-to-tackle-illicit-crypto-use-2773",{"id":95,"body":96,"status":6,"type":43,"date":73,"slug":97,"title":98,"image":99,"countries":100,"topic":101,"activity":102,"tags":103,"nid":104,"topics":105,"activities":106,"authors":107,"images":108,"websites":19,"area":19,"programme":19,"language":88,"translations":109,"translation_of":19,"user_created":64,"date_created":110,"user_updated":66,"date_updated":111,"content":112,"link":113},10583,"Improving the quality of intelligence we can extract from blockchain technologies could vastly increase our capacity to counter financial crimes involving crypto or virtual assets.\n\nThis Q&A builds on a [first article on the concept of blockchain intelligence](https:\u002F\u002Fbaselgovernance.org\u002Fblog\u002Funlocking-blockchain-intelligence-tackle-illicit-crypto-use) and practical use cases. This one focuses on the quality of current blockchain intelligence and the need for recognised standards and professional training to build capabilities in the public and private sectors.\n\nThanks to Bogdan Vacusta (National Bank of Romania), Nico Di Gabriele (European Central Bank) and Victor Vevera (ICI Bucharest) for the insights. Note that the views expressed are personal and may not be necessarily aligned with those of the institution of affiliation.\n\n### Should we be worried about the quality of blockchain intelligence currently?\n\nYes. Since there are currently no established or empirically tested standards, there is a real risk that inaccurate blockchain “intelligence” is presented as fact.\n\nTo prevent errors and misattribution, we need rigorous standards to test the integrity of blockchain intelligence. Users must also understand its limits and its role in the overall analysis process.\n\n### How do investigators and analysts currently?\n\nMany practitioners in the public and private sectors rely on commercial tools to trace transactions on the blockchain, but may lack understanding of how these operate or their limitations.\n\nThey may also simply rely on information that private blockchain tracing companies provide, with no means to independently verify the results and understand methodologies employed.\n\nThe information may be correct. But it’s a bit of a “black box” and the resulting blockchain intelligence may be of dubious quality – something that would never be accepted in traditional financial investigations.\n\n### Are you calling into question the quality of blockchain evidence used in court?\n\nYes. There are cases in the United States especially where the quality of the blockchain tracing methodologies has been questioned.\n\nFor example, in the case [_United States v. Sterlingov_](https:\u002F\u002Fcaselaw.findlaw.com\u002Fcourt\u002Fus-dis-crt-dis-col\u002F115886148.html?utm_source=chatgpt.com) in 2024, the defendant was charged with operating the crypto mixer the Bitcoin Fog to launder illicit crypto assets and evidence in the form of blockchain analysis was provided by Chainalysis. The defence argued that “the \\[g\\]overnment's ‘blockchain analysis’ is junk science.” “The problem is we have no data set, no scientific data set with which we can measure the reliability and the accuracy of this software”, they said. This has triggered [significant debate](https:\u002F\u002Ffortune.com\u002Fcrypto\u002F2024\u002F03\u002F13\u002Fblockchain-analysis-chainalysis-bitcoin-fog-law-enforcement\u002F).\n\nWhere the quality of evidence from the blockchain is questionable, it may be dismissed – or even worse, result in unjust outcomes and potentially the conviction of innocent defendants.\n\nFortunately, in most cases so far, other evidence existed that enabled the prosecution to secure a conviction beyond a reasonable doubt. \n\nThe quality of blockchain intelligence needs to be subjected to rigorous statistical evaluation and analysis. Where there is ambiguity, the burden to prove that adequate standards have been met should be on the party seeking to rely on the evidence.\n\n### How can law enforcement agencies build capabilities in blockchain intelligence?\n\nIt’s difficult!\n\n*   First, there are currently few options outside of commercial solutions. Training tends to focus on the specific solutions developed by the training provider.\n*   Second, when new staff are hired, especially in law enforcement and the public sector, these tend to be blockchain tracing experts who have gained their expertise using commercial tools. Again, this may lead to methodology bias.\n*   Third, the quality of available training varies significantly. Blockchain intelligence requires expertise in law, computer science and finance. Training courses rarely acknowledge the need to have at least a basic understanding of each of these fields.\n\nLast, currently expertise is tied to certifications issued by providers of commercial tools, with no independent means to test the knowledge and skills of existing or new staff.\n\n### What can be done to improve blockchain intelligence tools, training and quality?\n\nFor tools, there is a pressing need for public-private partnerships to develop independently verifiable blockchain intelligence solutions. This would give all users more options. Working with universities, research organisations and other academic institutions is a good starting point to determine the reliability of blockchain intelligence and further research new applications.\n\nFor training, we need non-commercial blockchain intelligence training programmes adhering to the highest standards, with inputs and best practices from both public and private sector stakeholders.\n\nFor qualifications and hiring, we recommend that the role of a blockchain analyst is professionalised and officially recognised in frameworks such as the European Skills, Competences, Qualifications and Occupations (ESCO) classification. For that, an independent accreditation process for recognised professionals needs to be established, involving stakeholders from different sectors including independent accreditation bodies.\n\nUnderlying all this is the need to develop global standards based on a deep body of research that acknowledges both the capabilities and the limitations of blockchain intelligence.\n\nA practical first step towards all of these goals is the creation of working groups of experts, academics and relevant organisations focused on the exchange and interoperability of blockchain intelligence, as well as on sharing technology and best practices.\n\n### Do initiatives to this end already exist?\n\nExamples of such initiatives in which we are personally involved include:\n\n*   The [Blockchain Intelligence Academy (BIA)](https:\u002F\u002Fbi.academy\u002F), whose mission is to develop “actionable, independent blockchain intelligence capability, in service of the truth by, placing “the integrity of blockchain intelligence above all else”. It evolved from a public-private partnership between ICI Bucharest and the Singapore-based blockchain intelligence firm ChainArgos. BIA is committed to developing training standards and is openly inviting all blockchain analytics providers to this initiative, as a key objective is to facilitate the use of various tools in training programs conducted by BIA.\n*   The [Blockchain Intelligence Professionals Association (BIPA)](https:\u002F\u002Fblockchaintelligence.com\u002F), which brings together practitioners in the field of blockchain technology. Its objective is to “establish a platform for dialogue, to facilitate training, sharing of expertise, good practice and to encourage new partnerships”. Bogdan Vacusta, the chairman of BIPA, is actively involved in facilitating interactions between blockchain analytics providers, with a key objective to facilitate public-private partnerships focused on standards and interoperability.\n\nBoth organisations are closely involved in the first ever Blockchain Intelligence Forum in Bucharest. Here, a special working group will be launched aimed at introducing a new occupation – Blockchain Analyst – into the Romanian and European classifications of occupations and qualifications.\n\nThe two initiatives are also exploring ways to provide blockchain intelligence accreditation that stakeholders globally respect and rely on.\n\n### Remind us: what is the dream? Our end goal?\n\nThe dream is to develop global standards of excellence for blockchain intelligence capabilities. Training is a top priority, to both strengthen the blockchain intelligence discipline and develop expertise that is less reliant on commercial blockchain tracing tools.\n\nOur end goal is to establish a globally recognised standard for blockchain intelligence skills and develop the capabilities of professionals accordingly to combat the rise in illicit finance and preserve market integrity. A clean market is a precondition for its stability and thus capacity to fulfil people’s needs.\n\nThe rapid growth of crypto-assets and the development of blockchain technology has seen an increase in their use to facilitate financial crime. This is why it’s more important than ever to provide a structured, robust and resilient framework to continually improve and train blockchain intelligence professionals.","setting-global-standards-on-blockchain-intelligence-from-idea-to-reality-2774","Setting global standards on blockchain intelligence – from idea to reality","\u002Fpics\u002Fimg-placeholder.png",[],[51],[80],[],2774,[57],[80],[],[],[],"2025-11-24T11:01:43.000Z","2026-05-29T22:22:38.000Z",[],"\u002Fresources\u002Fnews\u002Fsetting-global-standards-on-blockchain-intelligence-from-idea-to-reality-2774",{"id":115,"body":116,"status":6,"type":43,"date":117,"slug":118,"title":119,"image":120,"countries":121,"topic":122,"activity":124,"tags":127,"nid":143,"topics":144,"activities":145,"authors":146,"images":149,"websites":150,"area":19,"programme":19,"language":19,"translations":151,"translation_of":19,"user_created":64,"date_created":152,"user_updated":66,"date_updated":153,"content":154,"link":155},9655,"The Basel Institute on Governance is offering a new [Cryptocurrencies and Anti-Money Laundering Compliance Training course](https:\u002F\u002Fbaselgovernance.org\u002Fcourses-and-events\u002Fcryptocurrencies-and-anti-money-laundering-training) aimed at law enforcement officials, professionals in AML compliance and FinTech\u002FRegTech fields, as well as policymakers and investigative journalists.\n\nDelivered over four three-hour online sessions, the course covers the essentials of how to detect and prevent the use of virtual assets for illicit activities. \n\nIn this short article below, course leaders Federico Paesano and Phyllis Atkinson explain why it’s vital for a wide range of stakeholders in the public and private sectors to be able to investigate and defend themselves against criminals’ abuse of cryptocurrencies and other virtual assets.\n\n### Cryptocurrencies at the centre of attention\n\nCryptocurrencies have become an increasingly prominent topic of discussion amongst both public and private sector professionals involved in the prevention and combatting of money laundering. The most well-known cryptocurrency, Bitcoin, has generated a lot of interest, particularly as the media continues to cover a number of high-profile investigations and prosecutions worldwide.\n\nThe notoriety of this currency is not ill-founded. The apparent anonymity and invisibility that cryptocurrencies offer is progressively attracting more and more international criminals and money launderers. \n\n### Financial flows that fly under the radar\n\nCryptocurrencies have characteristics that can confound the efforts of the authorities and make such mediums attractive to the informal and illegal economies.\n\nNotably, they appear to offer the much-craved anonymity and, indeed, invisibility that organised crime requires. In a strongly regulated formal financial sector, this is increasingly difficult to find.\n\nThis perceived anonymity is the main attraction of cryptocurrency as a medium for laundering the proceeds of crime. Although the main cryptocurrency exchanges exercise Know-Your-Customer (KYC) and due diligence procedures, there are a number of other options to purchase bitcoins or other cryptocurrencies privately between individuals and bypass online exchanges completely.\n\nFortunately, as we will cover during the course, cryptocurrency is not as anonymous as many people imagine. Intrinsic characteristics of the blockchain, coupled with an understanding of users’ habits and the use of sophisticated investigative techniques employed by law enforcement, make it possible to identify users.\n\nPut into the context of grand corruption and organised crime scenarios, the use of cryptocurrencies is an example of the ever-evolving tactics employed by criminals to frustrate financial investigations and launder illicit assets.\n\n### How law enforcement and compliance professionals can keep up\n\nWe now have numerous successful criminal investigations where proceeds of crime, laundered through the use of cryptocurrencies, have been recovered. Contrary to popular belief, what makes Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies work has significant benefits for law enforcement as well.\n\n*   A public and freely accessible ledger of every transaction ever conducted allows law enforcement to trace transactions in a way that would never have been possible before.\n*   Being borderless, law enforcement can access information without some of the barriers of international cooperation that can hinder cross-border investigations.\n*   Since it is immutable, there is no risk that the data will be unavailable after a few months.\n*   There are various techniques that make attribution a task that is within the reach of not only law enforcement but also compliance professionals in the private sector.\n\n### About the course\n\nThis course is meant to address an audience of law enforcement and professionals dealing, at different levels, with virtual assets. The course will deepen the experience and expertise of practitioners in understanding cryptocurrencies and the risks associated. The participants will explore the legislative frameworks and learn how to trace illicit financial flows channelled through cryptocurrency.\n\nGiven the inevitable overlap between virtual assets and ordinary assets such as fiat currency, real estate, yachts and jewellery, this course also touches briefly on the issue of beneficial ownership. Assets acquired as a result of criminal activity in the form of cryptocurrency may well be exchanged for other assets, thus requiring the identification, tracing and seizure of the proceeds of crime. Determining the beneficial owner of illicit assets remains an integral part of the process, and represents a significant challenge to practitioners across the globe.\n\nThe workshop will be centred around a practical case scenario building on known and potential uses to “clean” stolen assets for integration into the financial system. Participants will be asked to trace transactions through the blockchain.\n\nThis practical exercise will be interspersed with key presentations, starting from the basics of cryptography, exploring how cryptocurrencies work, how to use the blockchain in financial investigations, understanding compliance and due diligence, through to the final recovery of assets.\n\nA presentation on European Union Anti-Money Laundering Directives (EU AMLDs) and Ultimate Beneficial Ownership (UBO) requirements, and the use of layering and direct ownership chains by beneficial owners, will be included.\n\nThe training will also take advantage of an external speaker, Christine Gschwend from MME Legal, a renowned expert on compliance and anti-money laundering. She will cover the compliance and legal aspects of cryptocurrency and virtual assets, and the way the private sector can be compliant with the legislation set forth internationally. \n\n### How to sign up\n\nThe next course will take place in English from 7–10 December 2020 (09:00–12:30 CET each day with a half-hour break). The fee is CHF 500 per person, with a discounted rate of CHF 200 per person available to members of public-sector, international, non-profit and academic organisations, plus independent journalists.\n\n[Find out more and book your space now!](https:\u002F\u002Fbaselgovernance.org\u002Fcourses-and-events\u002Fcryptocurrencies-and-anti-money-laundering-training)","2020-11-23","new-online-course-on-cryptocurrencies-and-anti-money-laundering-1922","New online course on cryptocurrencies and anti-money laundering","https:\u002F\u002Fjam.baselgovernance.org\u002Fapi\u002Fassets\u002Fd0257c81-34ab-434b-95e7-2b2144249399?width=1000&height=650&format=webp&quality=80",[],[50,51,123],"Private Sector",[125,126],"Courses","Training",[128,132,135,139],{"tags_id":129},{"id":130,"name":131},854,"Virtual assets",{"tags_id":133},{"id":134,"name":126},1372,{"tags_id":136},{"id":137,"name":138},818,"Anti-money laundering",{"tags_id":140},{"id":141,"name":142},1236,"Compliance",1922,[50,57,123],[125,126],[147,148],1203,1204,[],[21],[],"2022-05-26T22:53:52.000Z","2026-05-29T22:21:48.000Z",[],"\u002Fresources\u002Fnews\u002Fnew-online-course-on-cryptocurrencies-and-anti-money-laundering-1922",{"id":157,"body":158,"status":6,"type":159,"date":160,"slug":161,"title":162,"image":163,"countries":164,"topic":166,"activity":167,"tags":168,"nid":169,"topics":170,"activities":171,"authors":172,"images":173,"websites":174,"area":19,"programme":19,"language":19,"translations":175,"translation_of":19,"user_created":64,"date_created":176,"user_updated":66,"date_updated":67,"content":177,"link":178},9825,"Anti-corruption officials in Tanzania have been upgrading their skills in specialised financial investigation topics with the help of the Basel Institute’s [International Centre for Asset Recovery](https:\u002F\u002Fwww.baselgovernance.org\u002Fasset-recovery\u002Ftraining-programmes) (ICAR) and a local trainer certified by ICAR’s train-the-trainer programme.\n\nTwo training programmes –  on corruption in infrastructure projects and money laundering using Bitcoin – were held at the headquarters of Tanzania’s chief corruption-fighting agency, the Prevention and Combating of Corruption Bureau (PCCB).\n\n### About the workshops\n\nAround 30 officials from the PCCB and relevant partner agencies took part in the five-day [Corruption in Infrastructure Projects and Procurement](https:\u002F\u002Fwww.baselgovernance.org\u002Fasset-recovery\u002Ftraining-programmes\u002Fcorruption-infrastructure-projects-and-procurement) workshop on 15–19 July, which was led by an [ICAR-certified PCCB trainer](https:\u002F\u002Fwww.baselgovernance.org\u002Fnews\u002Ficar-certified-trainers-tanzania-share-their-expertise-fellow-anti-corruption-officials) and members of the ICAR training team. Participants took part in a hands-on simulated investigation in which they had to untangle collusive bidding, bid-rigging, fraud and bribery schemes in procurement and infrastructure projects. \n\nThe training comes at an opportune moment, as the Tanzanian Government is currently engaged in a number of significant infrastructure projects to upgrade the country’s roads, railways and airports.\n\n_“The training was an eye-opener,”_ commented one participant. _“It is definitely going to change the way we conduct procurement-related corruption investigations.\"_\n\nHeld just before the procurement training workshop, a two-day [Money Laundering Using Bitcoin](https:\u002F\u002Fwww.baselgovernance.org\u002Fasset-recovery\u002Ftraining-programmes\u002Fmoney-laundering-using-bitcoin) workshop on 11–12 July aimed to ensure PCCB staff remain up to date with fast-developing financial trends and are better equipped to investigate cases involving cryptocurrencies.\n\n### Inter-agency cooperation\n\nRepresentatives of partner agencies, including the Attorney General’s Office, Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions, Financial Intelligence Unit, Police and Zanzibar Anti Corruption and Economic Crimes Authority, also attended the workshop. Whenever possible, ICAR training programmes try to encourage this type of inter-agency cooperation, which is so crucial to the success of corruption investigations.\n\nThis aspect was echoed by CP. Diwani Athumani, Director General of the PCCB, in his closing remarks. Thanking the trainers for their hard work and commitment, and congratulating all participants for their engagement and motivation, he emphasised the _“value of our cooperation in the fight against corruption. It is universally observed that no single person, no country and no any institution on earth will ever be able to fight and eradicate fraud or corruption by itself. So please let’s keep up the teamwork spirit.”_\n\n### Building on success\n\nThe Director General expressed his desire for more training opportunities for anti-corruption officials. This, he said, would help Tanzania maintain momentum in its [increasingly successful drive](https:\u002F\u002Fwww.thecitizen.co.tz\u002Fnews\u002FPCCB-recovered-70-3-billion-in-2017-2018-says\u002F1840340-5046124-tjvsj6z\u002Findex.html) to investigate and prosecute cases of corruption and recover stolen assets.\n\nThe [Basel Institute’s long-standing partnership with the PCCB in Tanzania](https:\u002F\u002Fwww.baselgovernance.org\u002Fnews\u002Ftanzanias-anti-corruption-authority-approves-extension-basel-institutes-asset-recovery), along with the [train-the-trainer programme](https:\u002F\u002Fwww.baselgovernance.org\u002Fasset-recovery\u002Ftraining-programmes\u002Ftrain-trainer-ttt), is supported by the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation.","News","2019-07-31","tanzania-builds-capacity-and-cooperation-to-build-on-anti-corruption-success-968","Tanzania builds capacity and cooperation to build on anti-corruption success","https:\u002F\u002Fjam.baselgovernance.org\u002Fapi\u002Fassets\u002Fe061dc4e-fa75-4926-9182-4b9af19951d5?width=1000&height=650&format=webp&quality=80",[165],7457,[51],[126],[],968,[57],[126],[],[],[21],[],"2022-05-26T22:56:13.000Z",[],"\u002Fresources\u002Fnews\u002Ftanzania-builds-capacity-and-cooperation-to-build-on-anti-corruption-success-968",{"id":180,"body":181,"status":6,"type":159,"date":182,"slug":183,"title":184,"image":185,"countries":186,"topic":187,"activity":188,"tags":189,"nid":190,"topics":191,"activities":192,"authors":193,"images":194,"websites":195,"area":19,"programme":19,"language":19,"translations":196,"translation_of":19,"user_created":64,"date_created":197,"user_updated":66,"date_updated":198,"content":199,"link":200},9738,"Law enforcement officers from Kenya, Uganda, Rwanda, Djibouti, Tanzania and South Sudan last week worked together to solve a simulated investigation aimed at confiscating “laundered” cryptocurrency – entirely online.\n\nThe investigation was the centrepiece of a Cryptocurrencies and Money Laundering online workshop led by the training team of our International Centre for Asset Recovery in collaboration with German development agency GIZ. The workshop is an adapted version of the onsite training programme on [Money Laundering Using Bitcoin](https:\u002F\u002Fwww.baselgovernance.org\u002Fasset-recovery\u002Ftraining-programmes\u002Fmoney-laundering-using-bitcoin), which has seen a huge increase in demand as cryptocurrencies become a go-to tool for laundering the proceeds of corruption and other crime.\n\nOver four days, the 12 hours of instructor-led learning took the participants from the basics of cryptocurrencies to more sophisticated investigative techniques like blockchain analysis. Participants agreed on the value of understanding virtual assets and declared they would implement it in their daily work right away. It was an “eye-opener”, said one participant.\n\n### ICAR training shifts online, surpassing expectations\n\nAlso eye-opening is how smoothly and effectively this first intensive online workshop by ICAR’s training team turned out to be.\n\nDesigned to be delivered in person, [ICAR’s tailored training programmes](https:\u002F\u002Fwww.baselgovernance.org\u002Fasset-recovery\u002Ftraining-programmes) are hands-on and heavily based on interactive group tasks. These onsite workshops include a complex simulated investigation undertaken simultaneously by small teams.\n\nThe approach is aimed at helping participants from different disciplines and agencies learn not only new skills but also how to work together better in real life. This is extremely difficult to replicate in the online space, especially in contexts with less-than-perfect IT equipment and connectivity.\n\nThis is why we believe that virtual training workshops will never match the buzz of a room of investigators, prosecutors and financial analysts working and learning together around real tables. Nevertheless, the online delivery was a success thanks largely to the engagement of the participants, who adapted well to the online space.\n\nThanks also go to the Basel Institute’s IT team for their fast work in setting up an online learning platform designed to meet the needs of both trainers and trainees in the contexts in which we work. The design draws heavily on the initial experiences of our [ICAR field experts](https:\u002F\u002Fwww.baselgovernance.org\u002Fasset-recovery\u002Fcase-legal-assistance), who have been providing short courses and mentoring to members of their partner institutions since the start of the pandemic lockdowns.\n\nWe have open minds to the great potential value of virtual training both during and after the pandemic situation and are working on adapting some of our other onsite training workshop for online delivery.\n\nIf you have experiences or suggestions to share in this regard, do contact us via the ICAR Twitter account [@StolenAssets](https:\u002F\u002Ftwitter.com\u002FStolenAssets), on LinkedIn or to our [training team](https:\u002F\u002Fwww.baselgovernance.org\u002Fasset-recovery\u002Ftraining-programmes).\n\nFind out more\n-------------\n\n*   Read more about ICAR’s unique training concept in this [quick guide to effective training in financial investigations](https:\u002F\u002Fwww.baselgovernance.org\u002Fblog\u002Fphyllis-atkinsons-quick-guide-effective-training-financial-investigations) by our Head of Training ICAR, Phyllis Atkinson.\n*   ICAR training programmes are developed and delivered to government authorities at the request of partner countries. If you are an individual looking to develop your skills in asset recovery and financial investigation, feel free to take one of our [eLearning courses](https:\u002F\u002Fwww.baselgovernance.org\u002Fnode\u002F26).\n*   In collaboration with Swiss law firm MME, we offer a [FinTech AML Compliance Training](https:\u002F\u002Fwww.baselgovernance.org\u002Fcompliance\u002Fcompliance-training\u002Ffintech-aml-compliance-training) workshop aimed at helping FinTech, RegTech and compliance professionals detect and prevent the use of cryptocurrencies for illicit activities.\n*   Learn how our Peru team developed a [successful virtual course on public financial management](https:\u002F\u002Fwww.baselgovernance.org\u002Fblog\u002Fhow-design-virtual-training-course-works-your-context-experiences-peru) for 770+ officials across Peru and their creative solutions to issues with internet and computer access.","2020-05-19","virtually-investigating-virtual-currencies-in-east-africa-icars-cryptocurrency-workshop-goes-online-1750","Virtually investigating virtual currencies in East Africa: ICAR’s cryptocurrency workshop goes online","https:\u002F\u002Fjam.baselgovernance.org\u002Fapi\u002Fassets\u002F7bb9d8af-fd29-447b-8b7f-b03c278f8490?width=1000&height=650&format=webp&quality=80",[],[50,51],[126],[],1750,[50,57],[126],[],[],[21],[],"2022-05-26T22:55:00.000Z","2026-05-29T22:21:52.000Z",[],"\u002Fresources\u002Fnews\u002Fvirtually-investigating-virtual-currencies-in-east-africa-icars-cryptocurrency-workshop-goes-online-1750",{"id":202,"body":203,"status":6,"type":43,"date":204,"slug":205,"title":206,"image":207,"countries":208,"topic":209,"activity":210,"tags":212,"nid":213,"topics":214,"activities":215,"authors":216,"images":217,"websites":19,"area":19,"programme":19,"language":88,"translations":218,"translation_of":19,"user_created":64,"date_created":219,"user_updated":66,"date_updated":111,"content":220,"link":221},10582,"_A breakout session at the [9th Global Conference on Criminal Finances and Cryptoassets](https:\u002F\u002Fbaselgovernance.org\u002F9crc) focused on blockchain intelligence standards and interoperability – an issue that is becoming ever more critical for all who seek to prevent and combat the illicit use of virtual assets for financial crime._\n\n_Breakout leader [Bernhard Haslhofer](https:\u002F\u002Fbernhardhaslhofer.info\u002F) of the Complexity Science Hub Vienna explains the challenge below, and why the breakout represents a promising step towards the co-development of open standards in this domain._\n\nThe absence of standardisation and interoperability among blockchain intelligence tools has emerged as a critical challenge for all stakeholders working on preventing and countering financial crime.\n\nIncompatibilities manifest across multiple dimensions: data formats vary between platforms, identical concepts are described using different terminologies, computational methods such as address clustering follow divergent approaches, and user interfaces lack consistency.\n\nConsequently, problems include:\n\n*   Investigators work with isolated tool ecosystems with no systematic mechanisms for connecting investigations across platforms. This hinders inter-agency and cross-border cooperation.\n*   Prosecutors face problems demonstrating the reliability, admissibility and validity of blockchain evidence in court, in the absence of court-proof forensic procedures and standardised methods (in contrast to DNA analysis, for example).\n*   Judges in court proceedings involving blockchain intelligence currently rely on case-by-case testimonies from tool providers or expert witnesses. This creates resource-intensive judicial processes and lacks consistent interpretation across cases.\n*   Regulators and supervisors for anti-money laundering and counter financing of terrorism (AML\u002FCFT) use inconsistent blockchain intelligence methodologies and typologies to monitor for suspicious transaction patterns and conduct risk profiling.\n*   Training and certification are also at stake. The field lacks independent qualification standards, allowing unqualified practitioners to operate in the field and undermining professional credibility across the domain.\n\nThis situation reflects a typical pattern in emerging technology domains. Historical parallels exist across industries. For example, electrical systems evolved from incompatible regional standards to interoperable networks through adapter technology. Word processing software transitioned from proprietary formats to systems supporting cross-platform document exchange, without capitalising on the strengths of individual tools.\n\nAs blockchain intelligence transitions from an emerging field to an established professional domain, adopting similar standardisation approaches becomes necessary to ensure long-term viability and effectiveness.\n\n### A promising step towards collaboration\n\nAt the 2025 9th Global Conference on Criminal Finances and Cryptoassets organised by Europol, the Basel Institute on Governance and UNODC, we convened a workshop on creating harmonised standards for blockchain intelligence. The session assembled expertise from multiple domains: existing standardisation initiatives by INTERPOL and the [Global Coalition to Fight Financial Crime](https:\u002F\u002Fwww.gcffc.org\u002F), legal scholarship and practice, and operational perspectives from both analytics providers and cryptocurrency exchanges.\n\nIn addition to participants from legal and academic backgrounds, we had strong industry representation including blockchain analytics firms and cryptoasset exchanges. This ensured technical feasibility considerations informed the discussion.\n\nThe workshop addressed four critical components:\n\n*   Defining the technical scope by identifying specific components and processes requiring standardisation across blockchain intelligence tools and workflows.\n*   Outlining the legal and regulatory framework, including jurisdictional considerations, data handling protocols and compliance requirements.\n*   Mapping stakeholders whose participation is essential for standard adoption and implementation.\n*   Developing a concrete implementation pathway from initial agreement through pilot implementation to deployed, operational and open standards.\n\n### Technical scope\n\nThe discussion identified interoperability challenges across multiple technical layers. Immediate opportunities include:\n\n*   standardised data formats for attribution tags enabling third-party dataset integration;\n*   unified terminologies to eliminate semantic conflicts across platforms; and\n*   standardised investigation formats allowing transaction graph sharing without exposing proprietary attribution data.\n\nThese standards would provide direct operational benefits while respecting competitive boundaries between tool providers. For criminal prosecutions or asset recovery proceedings, they would also support the documentation of attribution tag provenance with a clear chain of custody and evidence classification.\n\nAddress clustering on UTXO chains such as Bitcoin presents greater complexity. Applied computational methods such as address clustering must provide transparent justification for grouping addresses into single entities. Yet experts noted significant variation in clustering results across tools and limited external verification capabilities. Providers meanwhile emphasised that computational methods constitute intellectual property, though accessible for regulatory scrutiny.\n\nParticipants agreed that initial standardisation efforts should prioritise readily implementable solutions, with any framework accounting for economic incentives that protect proprietary intelligence from competitors.\n\n> ### What would standards look like?\n> \n> Open standards for blockchain intelligence would be technical in nature but practical in impact. Examples of successful open standards in other domains include:\n> \n> *   [IETF RFC standards](https:\u002F\u002Fwww.ietf.org\u002Fprocess\u002Frfcs\u002F) describing internet technologies, protocols, and procedures\n> *   [W3C Web Standards](https:\u002F\u002Fwww.w3.org\u002Fstandards) ensuring a consistent and harmonious digitally connected world. They are implemented in browsers, blogs, search engines, and other software that power our experience on the web.\n> *   [STIX and TAXII](https:\u002F\u002Foasis-open.github.io\u002Fcti-documentation\u002F) are industry standards for sharing cyber threat intelligence.\n\n### Stakeholder participation and incentives\n\nThe successful development and implementation of standards require engagement from at least three stakeholder groups:\n\n*   Blockchain intelligence providers must contribute to the standardisation process and implement them within their platforms.\n*   User communities, including law enforcement agencies, financial regulators, cryptocurrency exchanges and financial institutions, must articulate operational needs and validation criteria.\n*   Technical experts provide methodological guidance to ensure standards are robust, implementable, and account for current capabilities as well as future scalability.\n\nIncentive structures differ across stakeholders. Tool providers benefit from meeting expressed user requirements. Establishing technically grounded standards through bottom-up consensus would also pre-empt potentially impractical top-down regulatory mandates.\n\nUsers gain operational autonomy and reduced vendor lock-in. This enables investigative continuity across platforms and organisational flexibility in tool selection, as well as enhanced reliability and sharing of blockchain intelligence data.\n\n### Next steps and learn more\n\nParticipants agreed that continued discussion must translate into concrete action, prioritising readily implementable solutions while considering incentive structures across all stakeholder groups. Follow-up steps will be announced in due course. Meanwhile:\n\n*   See the joint press release from the [9th Global Conference on Criminal Finances and Cryptoassets](https:\u002F\u002Fbaselgovernance.org\u002Fnews\u002Fglobal-experts-advance-joint-fight-against-crypto-enabled-crime), including links to recordings from public sessions.\n*   Read a Q&A with Vincent Danjean, Head of INTERPOL’s Cyberspace and New Technologies Laboratory, on efforts to enhance the [quality of blockchain intelligence](https:\u002F\u002Fbaselgovernance.org\u002Fblog\u002Fsmarter-blockchain-investigations-insights-interpol).\n*   Learn more about the [concept and use of blockchain intelligence](https:\u002F\u002Fbaselgovernance.org\u002Fblog\u002Fsetting-global-standards-blockchain-intelligence-idea-reality) and why professional standards are needed.\n*   Need the basics? Check out the Basel Institute's [introductory courses on blockchain: crypto investigation and AML compliance](https:\u002F\u002Fbaselgovernance.org\u002Fcrypto-aml-training).","2025-11-24","developing-blockchain-intelligence-standards-and-interoperability-a-critical-need-to-fight-financial-crime-in-the-digital-age-2879","Developing blockchain intelligence standards and interoperability: a critical need to fight financial crime in the digital age","https:\u002F\u002Fjam.baselgovernance.org\u002Fapi\u002Fassets\u002F0abcdf39-2cbe-462b-a1b2-74fbe836dc7c?width=1000&height=650&format=webp&quality=80",[],[51],[80,211],"Partnerships",[],2879,[57],[80,211],[],[],[],"2025-11-24T11:01:40.000Z",[],"\u002Fresources\u002Fnews\u002Fdeveloping-blockchain-intelligence-standards-and-interoperability-a-critical-need-to-fight-financial-crime-in-the-digital-age-2879",{"id":223,"body":224,"status":6,"type":159,"date":225,"slug":226,"title":227,"image":228,"countries":229,"topic":231,"activity":232,"tags":233,"nid":236,"topics":237,"activities":238,"authors":239,"images":240,"websites":241,"area":19,"programme":19,"language":19,"translations":242,"translation_of":19,"user_created":64,"date_created":243,"user_updated":66,"date_updated":244,"content":245,"link":246},9661,"Officials from Tunisia’s Financial Analysis Commission (TFAC), National Guard, and Customs and Economic Brigade are the latest to have undertaken our intensive training programme on [cryptocurrency and money laundering](https:\u002F\u002Fbaselgovernance.org\u002Fasset-recovery\u002Ftraining-programmes\u002Fmoney-laundering-using-bitcoin).\n\nFunded by German development agency GIZ as part of a global programme on [Combating Illicit Financial Flows](https:\u002F\u002Fwww.giz.de\u002Fen\u002Fworldwide\u002F39748.html), the course was delivered virtually by our International Centre for Asset Recovery (ICAR) training team from 6–9 October.\n\nAs part of the training, the 21 participants undertook a simulated investigation into a company that was suspected to be defrauding the Tunisian Ministry of Health. It emerged that Bitcoin was being used to launder the proceeds of this crime. Practical presentations at key junctions during the four days helped to provide the participants with the skills needed to move forward in the investigation, including analysing the blockchain, tracing properties that had been purchased with the funds and could be confiscated, and conducting a forensic analysis of the suspects’ computers to find the “private keys” of the unspent bitcoins.\n\nPresentation topics included:\n\n*   the basics of cryptocurrency\n*   the different blockchains and how they work\n*   money laundering techniques\n*   red flags\n*   asset tracing and recovery\n\nThe workshop included an extra session on mutual legal assistance and international cooperation.\n\nPre- and post-training test results indicated an overall 81% increase in knowledge. We are delighted that of those who took part in a follow-up survey, 100% rated the course as “excellent” or “very good” and nearly three quarters said it had resulted in a “paradigm shift” in the way they work.\n\nAs usual in our training courses, bringing representatives of different agencies together encouraged collaboration and networking in addition to skill enhancement.\n\n### About cryptocurrencies and money laundering\n\nMoney laundering and terrorist financing activities are increasingly facilitated by cryptocurrencies, which provide criminals with new options for transferring funds peer-to-peer, out of sight and beyond the regulatory reach of authorities.\n\nBlockchain, cryptocurrencies and anti-money laundering (AML) efforts are part of a fast-changing arena, with new tools constantly being developed and upgraded to help law enforcement stay one step ahead of the criminals.\n\nMore widespread awareness of how cryptocurrencies work could help TFAC (Tunisia’s Financial Intelligence Unit) and other relevant law enforcement authorities to detect more cases more quickly – and thereby strangle a fast-growing avenue for criminals to both obtain and launder the proceeds of their crimes.\n\n### Other news\n\nThe Basel Institute is co-organising the 4th Global Conference on Criminal Finances and Cryptocurrencies with Interpol and Europol. The event will take place virtually over two days on 18–19 November. [Learn more](https:\u002F\u002Fbaselgovernance.org\u002Fnews\u002F4th-global-conference-criminal-finances-and-cryptocurrencies-interpol).","2020-10-29","tunisia-increases-capacity-to-investigate-money-laundering-through-cryptocurrencies-1906","Tunisia increases capacity to investigate money laundering through cryptocurrencies","https:\u002F\u002Fjam.baselgovernance.org\u002Fapi\u002Fassets\u002Fb7d82031-4641-439a-92c7-19722ce1833f?width=1000&height=650&format=webp&quality=80",[230],7383,[51],[126],[234],{"tags_id":235},{"id":130,"name":131},1906,[57],[126],[],[],[21],[],"2022-05-26T22:53:57.000Z","2026-05-29T22:21:49.000Z",[],"\u002Fresources\u002Fnews\u002Ftunisia-increases-capacity-to-investigate-money-laundering-through-cryptocurrencies-1906",{"id":248,"body":249,"status":6,"type":159,"date":250,"slug":251,"title":252,"image":253,"countries":254,"topic":255,"activity":256,"tags":257,"nid":258,"topics":259,"activities":260,"authors":261,"images":262,"websites":263,"area":19,"programme":19,"language":19,"translations":264,"translation_of":19,"user_created":64,"date_created":265,"user_updated":66,"date_updated":266,"content":267,"link":268},9869,"We have just published our 28th Working Paper on a topic that is concerning AML, FinTech and RegTech professionals, finance professionals and law enforcement agencies worldwide - as well as ordinary citizens who wish to take advantage of new payment methods.\n\nThe topic? [Regulating cryptocurrencies: challenges and considerations.](https:\u002F\u002Fwww.baselgovernance.org\u002Fpublications\u002Fworking-paper-28-regulating-cryptocurrencies-challenges-and-considerations)\n\nIt offers a quick, clear insight into AML\u002FCFT legislation for cryptocurrency exchange services and virtual assets such as Bitcoin. It also responds to a recent call for expert comments regarding proposed changes to the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) recommendation on this subject – the FATF Interpretive Note to Recommendation 15.\n\nThe paper was written by the Basel Institute's cryptocurrency expert [Federico Paesano](https:\u002F\u002Fwww.baselgovernance.org\u002Fuser\u002F45). Federico is a Senior Financial Investigation Specialist at the Basel Institute's International Centre for Asset Recovery and regularly conducts [training  to anti-corruption professionals](https:\u002F\u002Fwww.baselgovernance.org\u002Fasset-recovery\u002Ftraining-programmes) in financial investigations and asset recovery, money laundering using Bitcoin and other topics.","2019-04-29","new-working-paper-regulating-cryptocurrencies-challenges-amp-considerations-894","New Working Paper: Regulating cryptocurrencies - challenges & considerations","https:\u002F\u002Fjam.baselgovernance.org\u002Fapi\u002Fassets\u002F406a681b-b835-43b7-b0a1-0696a641e22a?width=1000&height=650&format=webp&quality=80",[],[50,51],[126,53],[],894,[50,57],[126,53],[],[],[21],[],"2022-05-26T22:56:51.000Z","2026-05-29T22:22:01.000Z",[],"\u002Fresources\u002Fnews\u002Fnew-working-paper-regulating-cryptocurrencies-challenges-amp-considerations-894",{"left":270,"top":270,"width":271,"height":271,"rotate":270,"vFlip":272,"hFlip":272,"body":273},0,20,false,"\u003Cpath fill=\"currentColor\" fill-rule=\"evenodd\" d=\"M17 10a.75.75 0 0 1-.75.75H5.612l4.158 3.96a.75.75 0 1 1-1.04 1.08l-5.5-5.25a.75.75 0 0 1 0-1.08l5.5-5.25a.75.75 0 1 1 1.04 1.08L5.612 9.25H16.25A.75.75 0 0 1 17 10\" clip-rule=\"evenodd\"\u002F>",1780676418772]