Q: What is the best way to recover money from a cryptocurrency exchange scam? The platform I'm using to trade cryptocurrency is based in Singapore but operated by Chinese people. I have invested 150k AED into it, coming all from my credit cards. When I wanted to withdraw money, the customer service said that I need to pay taxes on the profit amount. After paying taxes to them, they are now saying the financial intelligence department found that my account is abnormal and suspected of money laundering due to recent frequent trades and excessive txn volume. They want me to deposit 20% of my account amt (10k USD) within a week to prove that I didn't launder money, or it will be frozen and will report me to the FI dept. Can you please advise if this is legal according to the laws and regulations of Singapore? I don't have money anymore to pay them and I think it's just a scam. The platform recently had the system upgraded and changed; no license, no t&cs, no physical address, no phone number. Shall I report to the police now?

Q: Hello Sir, Subj: First Islamic CryptoCurrency (FICS) An investment company called [------] based in RAK started receiving investments in FICS in the year 2019. In March 2019 I had invested AED 50,000 (the value of one Crypto token is USD 0.10) and they offered an initial bonus of 30% for the total investments as well. After one year of the investment, they informed me that all my total investment is shifted to [S] account. After some time, they informed me that [S] has tied up with the [----] platform and we can start very soon the trading. Unfortunately, no trading has been started yet, also I am unable to contact anyone in this company [A] or [S]. Kindly advise how can I get my money back, should I file a criminal case against it? Do you think this is a fraud? Looking forward to your kind reply. K. M.

Q: I believe that I am a victim of a crypto scam. I met a girl on a dating app in December and she onboarded me to a crypto platform helping me invest using step-by-step screenshots. I was consistently asked to deposit USD 20k money, however, raised USD 5k and she deposited USD 15k in my crypto account. My withdrawal was declined and customer services asked me to pay 12k USD in tax on profit made in order to access these funds. I arranged 9k and the lady paid 3k for me. Since 3k was not from my account, customer service asked me to pay it from my account which I duly did. Then I was asked to deposit USD 15k as security since the initial funds were from someone else. I did that and my withdrawal got approved but I was informed that the fund release is stuck as I need to pay USD 8.3k as a large channel fee and I would be upgraded to a premium client. Post this payment, now I am being asked for USD 6.3k as a miner's fee on my whole account balance to get my withdrawal

The new law is applicable to all entities dealing with virtual assets that are set up on the mainland as well as free zones, including special development zones. However, it does not apply to the Dubai International Financial Center (DIFC), which will have its own set of rules and regulations governing all virtual assets entities registered with the DIFC.

مع صدور قرار مجلس الوزراء رقم (58) لسنة (2020) في شان تنظيم إجراءات المستفيد الحقيقي، ومدى مساهمته في الحد من جريمة غسيل الأموال و تمويل الإرهاب، لا بد بدايةً من معرفة مفهوم غسيل الأموال و تمويل الإرهاب. تُعرَّف عملية غسل الأموال بأنها كل معاملة مالية أو مصرفية تهدف إلى إخفاء أو تغيير هوية الأموال المتحصلة بطرق غير قانونية، وذلك بتمريرها عبر النظام المالي والمصرفي لكي تظهر على أنها نابعة من مصادر شرعية، و من ثَمَّ إعادة ضخها واستثمارها بشكل قانوني مغاير لحقيقتها.

Money laundering represents a grave concern globally and is met with stringent legal measures in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) to combat financial crimes and preserve the integrity of the financial system. Here's an in-depth exploration covering various aspects of money laundering, the legal framework, and the challenges faced by legal professionals.

تم إنشاء المكتب التنفيذي لمواجهة غسل الأموال وتمويل الإرهاب بموجب قرار مجلس الوزراء رقم 10 لسنة 2021 ، ومن بين مهامه الإشراف على تنفيذ الاستراتيجية الوطنية لمكافحة غسيل الأموال وتمويل الإرهاب، ورصد وتقييم أية مخاطر تتعلق بمواجهة غسل الأموال ومكافحة تمويل الإرهاب وتمويل التنظيمات.

Blackwater International, a leading private security and investigative company, has established a reputation for handling complex and high-stakes operations. One of the most challenging areas the company has ventured into is cryptocurrency asset recovery. This case study explores a recent successful recovery operation conducted by Blackwater International, highlighting their methodology, challenges faced, and the impact of their efforts.

This Law promulgates the Federal Penal Code (Criminal Law) of the United Arab Emirates. Crimes and chastisement punishments shall be determined in accordance with the provisions of this Law and other penal codes.

The law defines the crimes related to money laundering, commitments and the jurisdictions of the governmental authorities, and the sanctions against perpetrators of money laundering.