France’s Ombudsman: Every Fourth Scam In 2021 Involved Crypto

France’s Ombudsman reports show that every fourth financial scam in 2021 involved crypto which recorded a 6% increase in 2020 so let’s read more today in our cryptocurrency news today.

France’s Ombudsman Marielle Cohen Branche revealed that about 25% of the monetary frauds in France involved crypto investment schemes which is an increase from 2020 when the figures reached 6%. the increasing popularity of the digital asset sector led to the imminent employment of fraudulent activities and the French ombudsman disclosed that such schemes accounted for about a quarter of the money scams in France in 2021.

Companies that want to provide digital asset services in France have to register with the financial ministry of France and the agency is quite responsible for protecting the investments in the nation and checks for compliance with AML laundering procedures. Cohen-Branche recommended that the safest option for the clients that want to trade crypto is to choose a local company that secured such a license from the AMF and cautioned that those operating with foreign exchanges could be left without compensation:

“The ombudsman is only able to act if the professional has actively solicited the investor in France.”

It’s worth noting that cryptos account for 6% of all monetary scams in France in 2020 and according to Branche, the increase indicates that the overall financial picture in the EU doesn’t look good. Last summer, the head of the French central bank noted that the EU and the EUR currency could face even tougher times if the urgent rules are not imposed in the crypto sector:

“Whether it is digital currencies or payments, we in Europe must be ready to act as quickly as necessary or take the risk of an erosion of our monetary sovereignty.”

The chairman of the AMF Robert Ophelia also called upon establishing a regulatory framework and according to him, the move can boost the growth and development of innovative projects while Ophele doesn’t want to see strict measures imposed on the industry and argued that such an initiative can drive the crypto businesses out of the EU.

As recently reported, Crypto crimes hit records numbers in 2021 of a whopping $14 billion according to Chainalysis and their annual crypto crime report. This is an increase of 79% in value from the $7.8 billion figure from 2020 thanks to the surge in crypto prices last year.