The Congress of the Republic of Guatemala accepted the Complete Legislation for the Prevention and Repression of Cash Laundering or Different Belongings and the Financing of Terrorism, recognized as Decree 15-2026.
The legislators accepted with 147 votes in favor of a complete of 160 deputies. The regulation superior within the third debate after a unprecedented session and can come into pressure three months after its publication within the Official Gazette.
This new regulation, which was initially introduced in September 2025, updates a authorized framework that was 25 years outdated and explicitly consists of, for the primary time within the historical past of the Central American nation, the cryptocurrency sector beneath the direct supervision of the State.
Alternate platforms, custody corporations and digital asset service suppliers will change into thought-about obligated topics earlier than the Particular Verification Intendance (IVE)no matter whether or not they’re native or not.
The laws repeals earlier decrees established in 2001 and 2005 with the aim of unifying monetary management insurance policies and complying with the suggestions of the Monetary Motion Job Power (FATF).
The choice responds to the obsolescence of earlier authorized instruments within the face of the dynamics of the present market and the emergence of recent digital property within the international economic system. With this, the Guatemalan authorities search to strengthen the nation’s worldwide credibility amongst traders and the correspondent banking system.
Though the decree continues to be awaiting its official publication and the event of its technical laws, the textual content defines that the preventive strategy will transfer from conventional banking to all financial actions.
Digital Asset Service Suppliers (PSAV) should adapt their operations and assume the identical administrative duties as banks and different regulated entities.
In keeping with the legislative doc reviewed by CriptoNoticias, the laws will regulate particular actions inside the cryptocurrency ecosystem, resembling trade, custody, transfers, the issuance of digital property and the administration of buying and selling platforms.
The inspection and identification (KYC) required by the authorities might be strictly utilized for the prevention of cash laundering and terrorist financingso it doesn’t prejudge or assure the acquiring of automated business licenses to function.
Regulated suppliers should register with the Superintendency of Banks via the Particular Verification Intendancy. Failure to adjust to this registration will lead to administrative sanctions starting from $500 to $500,000. relying on the severity of the fault.
Companies within the cryptocurrency sector might be pressured to implement a risk-based strategy. This consists of the creation of a prevention handbook with monetary crime mitigation insurance policies, the appointment of a compliance officer from senior administration and the execution of periodic inside and exterior audits, as required by the FATF.
One other essential level of the laws is the prohibition of anonymity in transactions with digital property. Platforms should apply strict due diligence or know-your-customer insurance policies, which requires figuring out and verifying the identification of the consumer and the ultimate beneficiary via trusted sources earlier than establishing any business relationship.
Likewise, the laws require that controls be extra rigorous when processing operations with applied sciences that make it tough to hint funds.
When it comes to reporting, cryptocurrency corporations will report on to the IVE any uncommon transaction that lacks an apparent financial or authorized foundation via a Suspicious Transaction Report.
Likewise, the duty to take care of a each day report and periodically report on any money transaction that exceeds $10,000 or its equal in nationwide foreign money is established.
Earlier proposal on cryptocurrencies and privateness
The brand new Guatemalan regulation designed to mitigate cash laundering and that addresses cryptocurrencies, destroyed initiative 6538 which, as this media reported, sought to manage the usage of bitcoin (BTC) and different digital property within the nation.
The truth is, the details about this invoice is now not obtainable on the transparency portal of the Guatemalan Congress, which raises a debate in regards to the parameters of the brand new laws that, as a substitute of giving prominence to the cryptocurrency sector, it solely consists of it in a broader regulation to adjust to the FATF.
Likewise, the laws introduce a deep controversy of a ethical and moral nature that immediately impacts the character of bitcoin. By strictly prohibiting anonymity in transactions and requiring strict due diligence or know-your-customer insurance policies, the Guatemalan State advances the person privateness of residents.
Moreover, suppliers are obliged to absolutely determine and confirm the identification of the consumer and the ultimate beneficiary via dependable sources earlier than establishing any business relationship, forcing extra rigorous controls when processing operations with applied sciences that defend the privateness of funds.
This management represents a direct contradiction with the basic ideas of economic freedom and particular person sovereignty that gave rise to bitcoin, reworking instruments of inclusion in state monetary surveillance mechanisms.
The variation to Decree 15-2026 additionally generates a debate within the enterprise surroundings because of the appreciable improve in operational and compliance prices for corporations that beforehand operated exterior the supervision radar beneath the FATF commonplace. The high quality print and technical thresholds that can govern the each day operations of digital asset suppliers might be outlined as soon as the Government Department points the complementary laws.
