Skynet Report Flags Shift in Crypto Regulation Risk Toward AML Enforcement

• The primary regulatory risk has changed, according to the Skynet State of Digital Asset Regulations Report.
• Multi-jurisdictional licensing is now a prerequisite for businesses that operate or intend to expand internationally.

The exploratory phase of the worldwide regulatory framework for digital assets has been surpassed by full enforcement. Frameworks are active, enforceable, and increasingly in line with conventional financial regulation in many important countries, such as the United States, the European Union, Hong Kong, Singapore, the United Arab Emirates, Japan, Turkey, and Brazil.

The primary regulatory risk has changed, according to the Skynet State of Digital Asset Regulations Report. Anti-money laundering (AML) enforcement has surpassed securities categorization as the primary priority. AML-related fines and settlements totaled over $900 million in H1 2025 alone, while SEC crypto enforcement penalties decreased by 97% from the previous year. Simultaneously, most countries have made smart contract security audits mandatory or quasi-statutory, and prudential norms are now similar to those used for conventional financial market infrastructure.

Multi-jurisdictional licensing is now a prerequisite for businesses that operate or intend to expand internationally; AML compliance budgets must match the scope of enforcement; and security audits are now ongoing, jurisdiction-specific expenses rather than one-time activities.

Important Findings

Enforcement is extensive and vigorous on a global scale. The United States, the European Union, Hong Kong, Singapore, the United Arab Emirates, Japan, Turkey, Brazil, and other significant markets now have enforceable regulatory frameworks.

The main regulatory risk now is AML enforcement. In H1 2025, AML-related penalties and settlements totaled over $900 million, with significant actions totaling 504 million (OKX) and 297.4 million (KuCoin). During that time, AML penalties in Europe rose by 767%.

The proportional significance of securities enforcement has decreased. While the DOJ and FinCEN aggressively grew, SEC crypto enforcement fines decreased by 97% year over year.

The implementation stage of stablecoin regulation has begun. Major countries now impose binding regulations on reserves, redemption rights, governance, and transparency. Managing cross-border regulatory friction and compliance costs has become the new challenge.

Token admission and licensing now need security audits. Most countries, such as Hong Kong, the UAE (VARA/ADGM), the EU (DORA), and the US at the state level (NYDFS, Wyoming), require or indirectly require independent smart contract reviews.

These days, prudential norms are similar to those in conventional finance. Requirements pertaining to capital sufficiency, asset segregation, liquidity management, and recovery planning apply to exchanges, custodians, and issuers.

Asset classes are structurally divided as a result of Basel rules. The Basel cryptoasset framework distinguishes between Group 1 assets (tokenized conventional instruments and qualified stablecoins) and Group 2 assets (unbacked tokens like Bitcoin and Ethereum), with the latter subject to far higher capital requirements, as of January 1, 2026.

According to current securities legislation, tokenization is expanding. The majority of governments are applying modified regular securities legislation to tokenized assets instead of custom frameworks; examples of institutional adoption include Franklin Templeton’s on-chain fund, Singapore’s Project Guardian, and Brazil’s Piloto Drex.
Learn more about international regulation of digital assets and pertinent facts by reading the whole report.