The Manhattan District Attorney's Office in New York recently issued a statement on compliance issues in the crypto industry: operating unlicensed crypto-related businesses should be considered a criminal offense. The logic behind this stance is quite clear—the current regulatory framework for anti-money laundering and combating organized crime still has loopholes concerning digital assets.

Specifically, the authorities have put forward several core demands: first, all crypto businesses must obtain legitimate licenses to operate; second, enforce KYC (Know Your Customer) procedures to ensure traceability of identities. These requirements may seem routine, but they put real pressure on the gray areas that have long bypassed regulation.

Of particular interest is the mention of channels like crypto ATMs. These self-service devices claim to offer convenience to users, but precisely because of their relatively covert operation, they have become hotbeds for "anonymous currency exchanges"—criminal funds can be quickly converted and circulated through such channels. From an anti-money laundering perspective, this is indeed a high-risk vulnerability.

This statement reflects the deep concerns of traditional financial regulators regarding the crypto ecosystem: how to preserve technological innovation while closing the loopholes that could be exploited for illegal activities. For industry participants, this is also a signal—rising compliance costs are inevitable, but they also mark the dividing line between legitimate players and the gray area.