person of the year

Person of the Year Isavella Evripidou, CEO at GFSC

Person of the Year: Isavella Evripidou, CEO at GFSC

Isavella Evripidou majored in international laws and graduated from the Queen Mary University of London. She was working at Interros Group as the legal director / compliance officer from 1999 to 2009.

She founded the GFSC Group in 2019, offering advising, planning, formation and incorporation as well as management of international structures, full licensing and post licensing supports in more than 70 jurisdictions.

Fazzaco met Isavella twice throughout 2021 for exclusive interview​. As a licensing expert, she has provided relevant services to a number of forex businesses, including numerous start-up brokers.

Source: https://www.fazzaco.com/newsdetail/person-of-the-year-isavella-evripidou-ceo-at-gfsc-128549

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GFSC Founder / CEO Isavella Evripidou on Licensing for Start-ups and Crypto

GFSC Founder / CEO Isavella Evripidou on
Licensing for Start-ups and Crypto

GFSC Global, International Corporate and Legal Service Provider, licensed in EU and other jurisdictions, with over 20 years of experience in Corporate, Legal, Immigration, Gaming, Financial, Banking and Accounting services with main goal to offer a full range of high quality, tailor-made services to corporate and physical clients worldwide through a qualified team of professionals.

Isavella Evripidou is the founder and CEO of GFSC, who had an interview with Fazzaco back in this May

Fazzaco: Before helping a firm register an oversea company or apply for a foreign license, will you conduct a qualification review?

Isavella: Of course, we do full check of proposed structure, people involved, their suitability for proposed positions. Afterwards, we guide our clients, inform them and proceed according to law requirements.

Fazzaco: What licenses will you recommend to a start-up broker seeking to enter the Southeast Asian market? What kind of advice will you give them?

Isavella:  Currently, the best license for start-ups is in Mauritius. It’s quite easy to get and we can fully assist our clients with all required local services, as we have an office there. For Southeast Asian market in particular, I would suggest a license in Vanuatu. It’s easy to get as well and requirements are not so difficult to comply with.

Fazzaco: CySEC has suspended / withdrawn the license of multiple brokers in recent years. Also, there have been a number of firms giving up their Cypriot CIF license. What’s your opinion on this?

Isavella: Cyprus financial market is very regulated and expensive market. By my opinion, the companies that have decided to withdraw their licenses were simply not ready to deal and comply with all requirements.

Fazzaco: As an expert in getting licenses for financial businesses, you undoubtedly have a deep understanding of various licenses. How do you think about onshore and offshore licenses?

Isavella: Indeed, I am an expert with more than 20 years in financial industry and have a deep understanding of a lot of licenses requirements worldwide. I strongly believe that both jurisdictions (offshore and EU) should be considered in one structure, where the combination will lead to more experience and offers towards their customers on a worldwide basis.

Fazzaco: GFSC also provides crypto license application services. Could you please shed some insight into the licensing of cryptocurrency activities in mainstream jurisdictions such as the UK, the US, Australia and Cyprus, etc?

Isavella: Yes, we do assist our clients with obtainment of crypto licenses in different jurisdictions, and in Cyprus as well. I think the world is ready for such regulation and a proper licensing is needed. The requirements are similar in all jurisdictions mentioned above, except capital requirements.

There are jurisdictions for start-ups and for established and licensed companies that would like to expand their targeted markets.

Fazzaco: How is your business going in the first half of 2021? And what do you expect from the second half of 2021?

Isavella: Our business is going very well so far, thanks to the strong strategy and financial projections. I do believe that the second half of 2021 will be on the same level as the first one.

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Isavella Evripidou: “Professionalism and integrity is the best combination”

Isavella Evripidou: “Professionalism and integrity is the best combination”

Successful Business talks to the founder of GFSC Global Group of Companies, Isavella Evripidou about the current role of Cyprus as a business centre and the intricacies of the relocation and headquartering on the island.

Cyprus has a long history as a business centre, but the matters of relocation and headquartering came forward only 3-4 years ago. What was the initial reason? How has Covid-19 changed the situation?
Cyprus has always been an attractive jurisdiction with numerous benefits for investors welcoming and onboarding different types of businesses here. To our customers worldwide, we suggest Cyprus as the first option. The pandemic did not change much, to be honest, we had even more requests and customers were more specific with those.

What are the main steps in the relocation process and how long does it take? How can your company be useful?
First of all, before relocating your business, you should be fully aware of all advantages and disadvantages of a particular jurisdiction, annual obligations, local legislation. Naturally, assistance from professionals, such as our Group of Companies, is needed in any case. We are always ready to assist our customers with suitable structure and understand their needs. As to the timeframe, it varies according to the situation in a specific original jurisdiction.

What are the most common challenges foreigners face when it comes to relocating or establishing a business in Cyprus?
Most of the times the problem is the delay in obtaining the documents from the Registrar of Companies of the business’ original jurisdiction. In Cyprus, we do everything very quickly.

How have you improved your business this year? How would your clients describe the experience of working with your company?
Our business has improved this year due to the online activities and actual expos that we have had. This has brought us more clients and projects, of which we are very proud. All our clients highlight our professionalism and integrity! I think this is the best combination to serve your customers and have them happy!

Isavella Evripidou
www.gfscglobal.com
+357 25 269 400
info@gfscglobal.com

GFSC Global is a leading Group of Companies licensed and regulated in Europe and offshore countries. It is regulated as well by well-known worldwide associations.

Since its establishment, the group assists with a full range of consulting, corporate, legal, financial, licensing, gaming, citizenship, immigration, accounting, banking, and administration services across the world.

GFSC Global offers its services in more than 70 jurisdictions.

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Which Regulator’s Forex License Is Easier or Stricter to Obtain?  GFSC Global’s Founder and CEO Speaks

Which Regulator’s Forex License Is Easier or Stricter to Obtain?  GFSC Global’s Founder and CEO Speaks

The financial services industry is undergoing sweeping changes driven by regulatory developments and continued consolidation in the sector. If you’re a new forex broker or looking to start a brokerage business, obtaining a license is one of the first things. However, this involves many factors that you need to consider.

Today, Fazzaco caught up with Isavella Evripidou, the founder and CEO of GFSC Global, to explore the topic of forex license.

Fazzaco: Hello Isavella, happy to have you at Fazzaco. As a start, could you please give us a introduction about yourself and GFSC Global?

Isavella: Hello, thank you for having me at Fazzaco.

Please allow me to introduce GFSC Global, International Corporate and Legal Service Provider, licensed in EU and other jurisdictions, with over 20 years of experience in Corporate, Legal, Immigration, Gaming, Financial, Banking and Accounting services with main goal to offer a full range of high quality, tailor-made services to our corporate and physical clients worldwide through our qualified team of professionals. We offer services in more than 100 jurisdictions.

Fazzaco: What motivated you to create GFSC Global and what need does the company aim to meet?

Isavella: By having more than 20 years of experience in Corporate, Financial (global financial markets), Banking, Crypto/ STO/ ICO, Gaming, Regulatory, Immigration, AML and Compliance industries, I wanted to combine business intelligence/ethics and my knowledge of international laws and regulations, which definitely gave us the opportunity to offer best tailor made solutions, understand customer’s needs, and able to provide our professional services worldwide.

GFSC Global is a boutique one-stop-shop Service Provider that can provide services from A to Z in more than 100 jurisdictions. We want our customers to be relaxed and run their business, we are behind them as a supporting arm, dealing with consulting, legal, immigration, regulatory and many more services in each country.

Fazzaco: Fazzaco has learned that GFSC Global will attend the iFX EXPO Dubai. What opportunities does an event like iFX EXPO 2021 offer you?

Isavella: I’ve always preferred to meet my clients, partners, associates and counterparties face to face, as this gives us the opportunity to meet better the other party and understand the cooperation or solutions they would need. Opportunities like this event give us the freedom for gathering and finding the best match for us and for our customers

Fazzaco: In the post-pandemic era, would you choose to attend an online expo and why?

Isavella: I have attended an online expos during the pandemic times, but I cannot say that it’s the same as this event. We missed the face to face meetings (hahaha)

Fazzaco: GSFC offers licensing solutions for Forex companies in various jurisdictions, which one is the most popular among brokers?

Isavella: We do offer licensing solutions in: Cyprus, Malta, UK, Latvia, Belarus, Gibraltar, Poland, Bulgaria, Ireland, Czech Republic, New Zealand, Lithuania, Mauritius, Cayman Islands, Seychelles, Belize, BVI, Singapore, Australia, Vanuatu, Hong Kong, Labuan, South Africa, Bahamas, Georgia, Malaysia, Cambodia, Isle of Man, St Vincent and the Grenadines and many others. The most popular in EU is Cyprus, Ireland and within offshore is Mauritius, Seychelles, Belize, UK

Fazzaco: Different jurisdictions have different license requirements, which regulator tends to be easier or stricter?

Isavella: Definitely each jurisdiction has different license requirements, but we can guarantee with a confidence that we know them all and can fully assist any application with full success. Easiest jurisdiction is Cyprus, Mauritius, Belize, Vanuatu and stricter is Czech Republic and Australia

Fazzaco: Compared with applying licence by broker themselves, what are the benefits of using GFSC Global’s service? Is a common practice of delegated applying in forex industry？

Isavella: Not everybody can apply for a license. There are many Regulators that do not accept direct communication, except the local Service Providers. Who will be your local Service Provider? Will you trust them your case? Are you confident that they have the experience with Financial licensing? A lot of providers promise that they can do the licensing and even give unrealistic costs, either they are cheap or expensive, but the application depends from understanding of needs of your customers to how to introduce it to the Regulator.

The best result comes with years of experience, which we have. For so many years we never had any rejections. Why? Because we, in GFSC Global, are team of professional experts where first: we understand the customer’s needs, second: offer the best tailor-made solution, which sometimes could be completely different of what our customers had in their mind and then third: apply successfully for a license

Fazzaco: ESMA and ASIC new regulations has been in force, how have these regulatory changes affected your business? And How are you adapting your products or services?

Isavella: Actually its never affected our business, as we never depended from 1 or 2 markets. We were always worldwide. We always had solutions in parallel or all new regulations in other jurisdictions. We always had clients that did not mind the ESMA or ASIC new regulations, which are definitely not for start-ups. Our clients are with us for many years. The word of “mouth-to-mouth” works as a certification of quality for us and for our professional services provided. Our clients trust us for so many years, as we are honest, professional and find the best solutions! We are Your Global Financial Services Consultants!

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ICO Consulting Services

ICO Consulting Services

Contents

  1. Introduction to ICO Consulting Services 
    1. What is Blockchain? 
    2. What is a Cryptocurrency?
      1. What is an Initial Coin Offering (ICO)?
      2. Initial Public Offering vs Initial Coin Offering
    3. How an ICO Works
      1. A business idea
      2. An ICO whitepaper
      3. An ICO Website
      4. Marketing the ICO
      5. Launch the ICO
      6. Develop the Product
      7. What is ICO Consulting Services or Blockchain Consulting Service?
      8. Biggest ICOs in History
      9. ICO Scams
      10. What Regulators are Saying About ICOs
      11. GFSC Global Blockchain Consulting Services

Introduction to ICO Consulting Services

The blockchain industry has been one of the most disruptive industries in finance in the past decade. Today, the industry has been embraced by large companies like IBM, Microsoft, Square and Robinhood. Many governments like Russia, China, and Iran are spending money to make developments based on the industry. In 2019, cryptocurrencies were the best-performing asset classes. The same is true with the past decade. Investors who invested in Bitcoin early on have seen returns north of 1000%.

Initial Coin Offerings (ICOs) have also become a popular tool for blockchain developers to raise money. In this article, we will look at the ICO process and what ICO Consulting Services is.

What is Blockchain?

The blockchain industry has been one of the most disruptive industries in the past decade. Today, companies like IBM are developing blockchain tools that help global companies ship goods in a simplified manner. 

What is a blockchain technology? The blockchain is a technology that allows digital information to be distributed but not copied. It is said to be a “time-stamped series of immutable records that is managed by a series of computers that are not owned by anyone.” The technology can help people and companies do things faster and safer.

There are many things that can be done using the blockchain technology. Cryptocurrencies is one of them.

What is a Cryptocurrency?

Cryptocurrencies have become the biggest products of the blockchain technology. As of this writing, all cryptocurrencies have a market value of more than $201 billion. To put this into perspective, these currencies are worth more money than General Electric, Twitter, and Target combined. 

Cryptocurrencies can be traced to 2008, when the world underwent the biggest financial crisis in our time. This crisis was caused by financial companies that rushed to give out subprime mortgages to millions of Americans. A subprime mortgage is one that is given to people who can’t pay it back.

Banks gave out these mortgages and then created financial products known as collateralized debt obligations (CDOs) and mortgage backed securities (MBS). All this led to a sharp increase in housing prices. In 2008, some of the banks that had given out these loans started reporting huge default rates. Ultimately, this led to the collapse of Lehman Brothers and Bear Sterns. Other companies like AIG and General Motors had to be rescued by American taxpayers.

In the aftermath of this crisis, the level of distrust of government and government agencies was very high. People watched in anger as government bailed out the same Wall Street firms that had caused the crisis.

At the same time, a person or team, calling itself Satoshi Nakamoto, published the Bitcoin white paper. They proposed a digital currency based on the blockchain technology. Unlike fiat currencies, bitcoin would be an independent currency that is controlled by no one. It would also be difficult to track this currency, which means that it would promote privacy.

Bitcoin did not become popular instantly. It became more popular when it was adapted by dark web marketplaces like Silk Road. To many Silk Road traders, Bitcoin was the currency of choice because it allowed anonymous transactions. 

Today, Bitcoin is one of the thousands of other cryptocurrencies in the market. These currencies come in all formats. For example, Ripple is a cryptocurrency that aims to simplify money remittances while Ethereum is used in smart contracts. 

What is an Initial Coin Offering (ICO)?

The introduction of cryptocurrencies led to another important phenomenon that was known as an Initial Coin Offering. The ICO is a process that is aimed at removing the bottlenecks that exist in raising money. Before ICOs, the default method of raising money from the public was the initial public offering (IPO). In an IPO, companies publish their documents and then go in a roadshow to attract investors. The company then trades in an exchange, where buyers and sellers can trade these shares. 

There are many challenges to IPOs. First, the company needs to be an established brand. Second, the IPO is limited to a certain geographical border. Third, regulators have put in place many regulations that in most cases prevent companies from being public.

An Initial Coin Offering is a process that aims to remove these bottlenecks. An ICO is a process in which developers come up with projects and raise money from people in all countries. Today, some of the most successful blockchain projects started as an ICO.

Initial Public Offering vs Initial Coin Offering

There are several differences between an Initial Coin Offering (ICO) and an Initial Public Offering (IPO). First, IPO is mostly done by companies that are already doing business. Some of the biggest IPOs in history are those of companies like Saudi Aramco, Alibaba, Facebook, and Royal Bank of Scotland. A company that is raising money using an ICO does not need to be in operation. In fact, most ICOs are usually based on ideas. 

Second, the IPO process is a long one and tends to include many banks, who act as underwriters. There are other consultants like lawyers that are needed to carry out the IPO. ICOs are different. All one needs is an idea, a white paper, and a marketing budget. One can start and complete the ICO process within a few days. Still, it is recommended that you use ICO consulting Services to have a successful fundraising.

Third, IPOs are mostly national in nature. For example, it is very difficult for a retail investor in India to participate in an American IPO. On the other hand, ICOs are global events. Anyone can easily buy a stake in an ICO.

Fourth, IPOs are highly-regulated industries. In the United States, the securities and exchange commission (SEC) is tasked with overseeing the IPO process. The ICO industry is not regulated. This is the main reason why there are a lot of ICO scams. 

In addition, in an IPO, the holders benefit when the share price moves up. As the company grows, the investors start making money using dividends. There are no dividends in an ICO. 

Another difference between an IPO and an ICO is that companies are mandated by law to disclose many things to shareholders. For example, when the CEO buys or sells shares, they are required by law to disclose these issues. This is different for ICOs. The company founders are not obligated to release any information to investors.

Finally, in an IPO, companies are required to announce their revenue numbers every quarter. This does not apply in an ICO.

How an ICO Works

In the previous part, we have looked at what an ICO is. We have also looked at how it differs from an initial public offering. In this part, we will look at how an ICO works.

A business idea

All ICOs start with a business idea. The developer studies the market and identifies a gap. They then come up with a method of solving this idea. It is important for you to consider whether the idea is viable or not. It is also important to see other companies that are in the industry and find gaps. It is important to note that there are some companies that are already in business that may opt to use an ICO instead of an IPO.

An ICO whitepaper

After coming up with an idea, you need to decide whether you want to do an ICO or fund the company yourself. If you decide to take the route of an ICO, you need to do a whitepaper.

What is an ICO whitepaper? An ICO whitepaper is a comprehensive document where you discuss the business that you are starting, the market you are targeting, and the strategy you want to use. The whitepaper can be compared to the form S1, that companies submit to the SEC before they become publicly listed.

The ICO whitepaper has a number of sections:

  • Abstract – This section summarizes your project.
  • Problem – This section describes the problem you are solving.
  • Solution – You describe the solution that you are offering.
  • Roadmap – Here, you provide a roadmap that you plan to use.
  • Funds required – You provide a budget of the funds you need and how you plan to use it.
  • Market analysis – You showcase that you have done enough research about the idea you are raising.
  • Go-to-Market strategy – You write about your market strategy.
  • Team – You show the team members and their biographies.

We recommend that you use a good ICO consulting services provider to come up with the whitepaper. A good example of a simple yet very effective whitepaper was published by Facebook, when it unveiled Libra. You can get the Libra whitepaper here.

An ICO Website

After coming up with an ICO white paper, it is now important that you have an ICO website. This is a website that you will use to market and promote your project. Ideally, the ICO website should be designed well. It should also have a number of qualities such as:

  • It should be eye-catching.
  • It should be simple to navigate.
  • It should have good graphics, including videos. 
  • It should be responsive. This means that it should be easy to navigate on all devices.
  • An ICO website should be fast and secure.
  • An ICO website should have a good way to checkout.
  • An ICO website should be optimized for the search engines.
  • Show urgency – The website should show urgency by having a ticking clock that shows when the ICO will expire. 

A good and well-qualified ICO consulting services provider should be used to help you come up with such a website.

Marketing the ICO

After coming up with a good ICO white paper and a good ICO website, it is now important that you market it. The best way of marketing an ICO is using search engine optimization. This process is important because Google does not support ICO marketing. Instead, it is recommended that you use a good ICO consulting services provider, who will come up with a good strategy for marketing the ICO. Some of the best ways of marketing the ICO are:

  • Guest posting – This is a process where the company writes guest posts in highly-trafficked websites.
  • Content marketing – This is a process where the ICO team uses content to reach out to more people.
  • Sponsored content – This is a process where the ICO team comes up with sponsored content in highly-trafficked websites.
  • Sponsored ads – This is where the ICO team places ads directly to websites that are highly-trafficked.

Search Engine Optimization (SEO) – This is a process in which the ICO consulting services use search engine optimization to promote the ICO.

Launch the ICO

After you raise money, you need to list your ICO in one of the popular exchanges. Your investors can now buy and sell the tokens in the open market.

Develop the Product

After you raise money, you need to go ahead and develop the product. It is recommended that you continue updating the ICO holders of the progress that you are making. 

What is ICO Consulting Services or Blockchain Consulting Service?

The ICO industry has become one of the biggest in the blockchain industry. This is because of the vast amount of money that companies have raised using ICOs. 

It is estimated that thousands of ICOs are launched every month. Unfortunately, only a few ICOs become successful. Part of the reason why many ICOs don’t succeed is that their founders don’t use the services of professionals. This is where ICO consulting services or blockchain consulting services come in. These are companies that help people carry out the ICO process successfully. Here are some of the most important services that are offered by ICO consulting services:

 

  • Market research – The consultants conduct a thorough market research on the viability of a project.
  • ICO whitepaper writing – ICO consulting services come up with quality whitepapers for companies launching their ICOs. 
  • ICO marketing services – ICO consultants understand the best practices of marketing an ICO. They help come up with a solid marketing strategy and implement it well.
  • ICO launching – These companies help to launch an ICO to the general market.
  • Company registration – ICO consulting services help to register companies in European and offshore jurisdictions.

Biggest ICOs in History

In the past few years, the total number of companies that have launched their ICOs has been increasing. In total, ICOs have raised more than $10 billion from global investors. Here are the biggest ICOs in the recent history.

  • Telegram – Telegram is a privacy-focused application that has hundreds of millions of users. The company raised more than $1.7 billion in an ICO.
  • EOS – EOS launched its ICO and raised more than $4 billion. This is a bigger valuation than Box and Stitch Fix.
  • Petro – This is an ICO that was offered by the Venezuelan government. It raised almost $700 million.
  • Filecoin – This was an ICO that raised more than $200 million.

ICO Scams

The initial coin offering has been associated with scam. This is the main reason why companies like Facebook and Google announced that they would stop advertising these services. It has been reported that many people have lost billions of dollars through initial coin offerings. 

Indeed, many of the companies mentioned above have been linked to scams. EOS was recently forced by the SEC to pay a $24 million fine for deceiving investors. Filecoin, which raised more than $200 million has been linked to crime. Telegram also found itself in trouble with the SEC. 

However, not all ICOs are scams. The reality is that scams happen even in the most regulated industries. For example, a company like Enron became one of the biggest energy companies in the world. It was overseen by the SEC. The same is true with companies like Lehman Brothers and Stanford Financial Group. Investors lost billions of dollars when these companies went under.

As an investor, you need to ensure that you do a lot of due diligence when you are investing in an ICO. There are some basic things that you can do to stay safe when investing in an ICO.

  • Do a reverse image search of the team members
  • Read the whitepaper and see whether there are any facts.
  • Research on the main claims. 
  • Reverse image search of the images on the ICO document.
  • Research on the team members. 
  • Research on the domain registration of the company.
  • Use an ICO consulting services to know whether the ICO is genuine.

What Regulators are Saying About ICOs

Regulators around the world were unprepared for the new age of blockchain technology. They are still unprepared for an industry that promises to upend the way the world operates. Generally, regulators such as the SEC and Finra have warned that there are risks of investing in ICOs. However, they have not come up with regulations that are meant to ban these ICOs.

GFSC Global Blockchain Consulting Services 

At GFSC Global, we are the leading blockchain or ICO consulting service in the world. We have a team of veteran consultants and lawyers who have been in the industry for decades. We help our blockchain customers in a number of ways. We help them create intuitive and user-friendly websites, have quality whitepapers, market their services, have a virtual office, have a bank account in the European Union, and have all tools they need to launch their ICOs. 

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The Fifth Money Laundering Directive and legal Compliance


The Fifth Money Laundering Directive and legal Compliance

10th of January 2020 is the date the Fifth Anti-Money Laundering Directive (5AMLD) will become law within the European Union.

5AMLD is intended to built on the 4AMLD’s attack on financial crime by boosting existing transparency rules. As a result, those working in financial services will have to meet new requirements as 5AMLD targets areas that have so far not felt the force of previous directives.

For the first time, cryptocurrencies will face regulation that was applied to more traditional financial institutions under 4AMLD. Cryptocurrency exchanges will now have to perform customer due diligence and submit suspicious activity reports (SARS).

5AMLD stretches out to one thing: know your business. The EU wants its latest directive to face the fight to money laundering.

Under 5AMLD, EU member states must establish a national register of beneficial ownership information that covers businesses, trusts and even those possessing safe-deposit boxes. The information on each member’s register should be available to share with other members and the records are required to cover anyone who has a 25% or greater stake in a company.

5AMLD also requires those in business to carry out what amounts to due diligence on countries. Failing to meet the requirements of such obligations can mean, based on the 5AMLD, fines up to a maximum of €5 million or 10% of annual turnover.

Therefore, the right controls, procedures and enhanced levels of staff awareness are essential. Not meeting those expectations would be very costly.

Source: lawyer-monthly.com

 

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Swedish, Estonian regulators advance Swedbank probe


Swedish, Estonian regulators advance Swedbank probe

Swedish and Estonian financial regulators have taken their investigations into Swedbank over anti-money laundering controls as its Baltic operations to the next level, they said, making a formal step in the process that could lead to a financial penalty.

Sweden’s financial supervisory authority (FSA) mentioned that weaknesses have been identified in Swedbank’s anti money laundering procedures and that it’s now examining if it should face a formal sanction.

The bank has previously admitted to failings in its money laundering controls in the Baltics and it was widely expected that the FSA would go ahead with a formal case after opening an investigation earlier this year. A decision is expected early next year.

The maximum fine that the Swedish FSA can impose is 10% of annual group revenue.

Swedbank has lost around 40% of its market value since its Estonian business was caught up in the money laundering allegations that have engulfed Danish rival Danske Bank.

Source: Reuters.com

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Google and YouTube fined with $170 million for violations of children’s privacy

Google and YouTube fined with $170 million for violations of children’s privacy

Google and YouTube will pay $170 million to settle a case with the US Federal Trade Commission and New York Attorney General that alleges the tech giant illegally collected children’s personal information.

Under the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA), owners of online services targeted at children need to gain parental consent before collecting data on persons under the age of 13, which also includes the use of persistent identifying cookies.

The FTC and New York Attorney General put forward the argument in a complaint that YouTube channels created to target children needed to comply with COPPA.

As final settlement YouTube agreed to pay the amount of $170 million. From that amount $136 million will be taken by the FTC and New York will take the remaining $34 million.

This is the largest amount fined and which will be collected for a non-criminal case which concerns child protection. The previous record held the amount of $5,7 million which was imposed in 2019 to the owner of the famous TikTok video application.