Hitachi, Ltd., NTT Digital Corporation, OPTAGE Inc., Crypto Garage Inc., JPYC Corporation, Chainalysis Japan Inc., Digital Platformer Inc., NEC Corporation, Nomura Holdings, Inc., Bitbank Corp., finoject Inc., Hokkoku Bank Ltd., and Laser Digital Japan Inc. launched a proof of concept from February to April 2025 to improve the effectiveness and collaboration of anti-money laundering measures in digital asset transactions such as cryptocurrencies, stable coins, and NFTs.
In this PoC, Hitachi and the 12 digital asset trading-related businesses and AML-related technology providers mentioned above will work together to share the systems, human resources, and information required for anti-money laundering measures, aiming to improve the efficiency and sophistication of AML in the digital asset market. Traditionally, digital asset trading businesses have tackled AML measures individually, but this has presented challenges such as the burden on costs and human resources, and it is expected that they will also be required to respond to stricter regulations in the future. Therefore, this PoC will be carried out with the aim of improving efficiency by resolving the shortage of human resources, and improving the accuracy and speed of operations.
Based on the results of this PoC, Hitachi and each operator will expand collaboration with digital asset trading-related operators participating in AML measures. Furthermore, by strengthening AML risk management across the entire digital asset market, Hitachi hopes to contribute to the realization of safe and secure digital asset trading, the prevention of crimes and fraud such as money laundering, and the development of Web3 in Japan.
In recent years, while the digital asset market has grown rapidly, the anonymity of blockchain transactions has led to an increase in their misuse for money laundering and crime. For this reason, international AML regulations are being strengthened to create an environment in which users can safely and securely use various digital asset services and to realize sound financial transactions. However, digital asset trading-related businesses, such as cryptocurrency exchanges and Web3-related companies, each respond to regulations individually, resulting in high costs and a shortage of specialized personnel familiar with AML work and technology, making it difficult to advance AML compliance in the digital asset market.
Therefore, this time, Hitachi will collaborate with each business operator to conduct this PoC, aiming to enhance and streamline AML by consolidating and sharing the AML operations that each business operator currently performs individually.
SOURCE: PRTimes
