Australia cancels registration of crypto provider GetCoins following customer scam complaints

Australia’s financial intelligence regulator AUSTRAC said Sept. 7 that it canceled, suspended or refused to renew 45 remittance and virtual asset provider registrations over the past year, highlighting how failures under the registration regime can cost businesses permission to operate.The disclosure covers both sectors, with AUSTRAC saying the actions removed those businesses from its registers. AUSTRAC CEO Brendan Thomas said businesses with canceled registrations can no longer operate.AUSTRAC also linked its earlier cancellation of GetCoins, a virtual asset service provider, to disruption of alleged cryptocurrency investment scams. The regulator identified the business as BA Digital Ventures Pty Ltd, trading as GetCoins. Its registration decision record dates the cancellation to June 4, 2026, placing the decision three months before the September announcement.AUSTRAC said it worked with the National Anti-Scam Centre on GetCoins following customer complaints. It requested information about the provider’s operations to assess its ability to manage money laundering risks.The regulator said GetCoins was allegedly exploited by organized cryptocurrency investment scams. AUSTRAC said i...