When you trade or hold cryptocurrency compliance, the set of legal and operational rules that require crypto platforms to verify users and track transactions to prevent crime. Also known as crypto regulation, it’s no longer just a back-office concern—it’s the reason some exchanges ban U.S. users, why you can’t skip identity checks on new platforms, and why fake airdrops vanish overnight. If you’re using crypto in 2025, you’re already inside this system—whether you like it or not.
It all comes down to two big things: KYC crypto, the process of verifying your identity before you can trade or withdraw. Also known as Know Your Customer, it’s why you had to upload your ID to Binance, Kraken, or even a small exchange like Libre. And AML crypto, the rules that force platforms to watch for money laundering, terrorist funding, and scams. Also known as Anti-Money Laundering, it’s why Canada seized $40 million from TradeOgre for operating without any user checks. These aren’t suggestions. They’re laws enforced by police, banks, and international bodies like the FATF. The FATF Travel Rule, a global standard requiring exchanges to share sender and receiver info for transactions over $1,000. Also known as VASP Rule, it’s what makes anonymous trading on privacy coins like Monero harder than ever. If a platform ignores these rules, it gets shut down. Users lose access. Funds get frozen. And scammers? They disappear.
That’s why every post in this collection ties back to compliance. The TradeOgre shutdown? A direct result of ignoring KYC. The LongBit and AnimeSwap scams? They never had compliance because they never intended to be real. Even the fake CovidToken and HyperGraph airdrops? They don’t need KYC because they’re not real platforms—they’re traps for people who skip the basics. Meanwhile, real projects like Moola Market and Shadow Exchange operate within these rules because they know the alternative is death.
You don’t need to be a lawyer to understand this. You just need to know: if a crypto platform doesn’t ask for your ID, it’s either too new to be trusted… or it’s a scam. If a token has zero trading volume and no exchange listing, it’s not a project—it’s a ghost. And if someone promises free crypto without any steps, they’re not giving you a gift—they’re stealing your keys.
What you’ll find here aren’t theory papers or legal jargon. These are real cases. Real failures. Real warnings. From the CANDY token that pays you for booking flights—not airdropping—to the ONUS airdrop that actually worked because it followed the rules. This isn’t about stopping innovation. It’s about surviving it.
Upbit, South Korea's largest crypto exchange, faced $34 billion in potential fines for KYC violations in 2025. The crackdown forced sweeping changes across the industry and set a new global standard for crypto compliance.