On June 12th, the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region Government issued a statement, saying that Hong Kong is stepping up efforts to combat money laundering activities related to cryptocurrencies. To this end, the Hong Kong Customs and the University of Hong Kong have joined hands to jointly develop technology-driven solutions to enhance the tracking of virtual asset flows.
From the 9th to the 12th of this month, the Hong Kong Customs and the University of Hong Kong held a “Regional Anti-Money Laundering Capacity Building Workshop”. Assistant Commissioner (Intelligence and Investigation) of the Hong Kong Customs, Wong Ho-yin, pointed out that since 2021, the Hong Kong Customs has recorded 39 money laundering cases, among which 7 involved virtual currencies, with a total amount of over 9 billion Hong Kong dollars. Virtual currencies lack unified supervision globally. Their anonymity, cross-regional nature and fast settlement characteristics increase the risk of criminals using them to launder money, making it very difficult for law enforcement departments to investigate.
In the collaborative project, engineers and researchers from the University of Hong Kong will work with the Hong Kong Customs to design tools capable of mapping and monitoring the flow of digital assets on blockchain networks, in order to assist law enforcement agencies in identifying suspicious patterns related to money laundering and other illegal financial activities. Professor David Srolovitz, the dean of the Faculty of Engineering at the University of Hong Kong, emphasized that technological innovation should be combined with regulatory enforcement. By bringing together experts from different fields, the complex challenges of financial crimes in the digital age can be better addressed.
This cooperation is expected to enhance the anti-money laundering capabilities of customs organizations and law enforcement agencies in the Asia-Pacific region and strengthen international cooperation. Meanwhile, this move by Hong Kong may also serve as a reference for other countries and regions in the region, promoting the application of similar systems.
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