TCH and the BAFT submitted comments in response to an NPR issued by FinCEN and the Fed’s Board of Governors that proposed changes to the Recordkeeping Rule and Travel Rule. The agencies proposed (i) creating a new category of transmittals of funds that are international and lowering the value threshold at which the Rules would apply to such international transmittals of funds from $3,000 to $250 and, (ii) revising the definition of “money” to include convertible virtual currencies and digital assets that have legal tender status for the recipient. TCH and BAFT emphasized in their comments that consideration must be made as to the Rules’ impact on wire payments versus new types of faster payments when determining value thresholds and

• supported the $250 threshold for payments that transfer value into or out of the U.S.;
• urged FinCEN and the Board to revise the criteria for what constitutes an international payment to include a requirement that the payment must transfer value into or out of the U.S.;
• suggested that with respect to account-based transmittals of funds, banks should only be deemed to have a “reason to know” that a transmittal of funds transfers value into or out of the United States based on the SWIFT bank identifier code (BIC) or other rules-based identifiers for the transmitter’s or recipient’s financial institution that is included in the payment message; and
• supported the proposed changes to the definition of money.

To read the full comment letter click here.