According to the source, EU law enforcement will deepen cross-border cooperation and invest in new capabilities as criminals refine blockchain abuse tactics, source: Europol. The move aligns with the EU Travel Rule for crypto transfers and MiCA timelines that tighten supervision of virtual asset service providers and token issuers across 2024 to 2025, increasing compliance obligations at EU exchanges and stablecoin providers, source: Regulation (EU) 2023/1113 and Regulation (EU) 2023/1114. Criminal methodologies increasingly include chain hopping, mixers, and cross-chain bridges, which remain key focus areas for analytics and enforcement, source: Chainalysis 2024 Crypto Crime Report and TRM Labs 2024 Illicit Finance Report. These enforcement and regulatory measures directly impact VASP compliance processes and counterparty risk screening for EU crypto transfers, source: Regulation (EU) 2023/1113 and Regulation (EU) 2023/1114.

According to the source, Europol states criminal use of cryptocurrencies is becoming increasingly sophisticated, a trend it has detailed in its Internet Organised Crime Threat Assessment. Source: Europol IOCTA 2023. Europol documents laundering methods including mixers and privacy wallets, peel chains, cross-chain swaps via bridges, decentralized exchange hopping, and cash-outs through P2P and OTC brokers. Source: Europol IOCTA 2023. For traders, sustained law-enforcement pressure on obfuscation tools has reshaped on-chain flows before, exemplified by the U.S. Treasury’s August 2022 sanction of Tornado Cash and the subsequent decline in mixer inflows measured on-chain. Sources: U.S. Treasury OFAC; Chainalysis 2023. EU implementation of the Travel Rule via Regulation (EU) 2023/1113 requires crypto-asset service providers to transmit originator and beneficiary information with transfers, increasing compliance obligations for EU-facing exchanges. Source: Regulation (EU) 2023/1113.

According to the source, the UK tax authority HM Revenue & Customs is intensifying compliance outreach to crypto investors over unpaid gains, and HMRC classifies most cryptoasset disposals as taxable capital gains that must be reported via Self Assessment. Source: https://www.gov.uk/hmrc-internal-manuals/cryptoassets-manual The UK reduced the Capital Gains Tax annual exempt amount to £3,000 from April 2024, bringing more BTC and ETH profits into scope for tax reporting and payment. Source: https://www.gov.uk/capital-gains-tax/allowances HMRC can obtain user and transaction data from crypto exchanges using statutory information powers and data-gathering notices, while UK crypto firms must comply with the crypto Travel Rule, enhancing traceability of transfers. Source: https://www.gov.uk/guidance/checks-what-hmrc-can-do; https://www.fca.org.uk/firms/cryptoassets/travel-rule Late filing and late payment trigger penalties and interest, increasing effective trading costs for UK-based crypto traders if gains are unreported or paid late. Source: https://www.gov.uk/self-assessment-tax-returns/penalties; https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/interest-rates-for-late-and-early-payments/interest-rates-for-late-and-early-payments For trade planning, HMRC applies pooling and the same-day and 30-day matching rules to cryptoassets, affecting tax-loss harvesting and cost basis calculations, so accurate transaction records are essential. Source: https://www.gov.uk/hmrc-internal-manuals/cryptoassets-manual; https://www.gov.uk/hmrc-internal-manuals/capital-gains-manual/cg51500 Cross-border data visibility is set to expand as jurisdictions implement the OECD Crypto-Asset Reporting Framework, to which the UK has committed, increasing compliance risks for offshore holdings. Source: https://www.oecd.org/tax/exchange-of-information/crypto-asset-reporting-framework-and-amendments-to-the-common-reporting-standard.htm