The US Financial Crimes Enforcement Network hopes to persuade Congress to amend the Bank Secrecy Act’s term “broker or dealer in securities” to take in funding portals. This proposal does not affect other activities, beyond securities, conducted by these businesses.

The BSA regulations define broker-dealers in securities as persons “registered, or required to be registered, as a broker or dealer with the Securities and Exchange Commission under the 1934 Act.” In 2012, Congress passed the Jumpstart Our Business Startups Act (JOBS Act) that created a new exemption for offerings of crowdfunded securities under certain circumstances. The JOBS Act also exempted certain funding portals from the 1934 Act’s registration requirements, thus stopping them from being classified as brokers or dealers in securities for the purposes of the BSA. After consulting the SEC, FinCEN has proposed the amendment in an effort to gain access to the reports and records that funding portals may provide for anti-money-laundering purposes.

FinCEN is asking interested parties for comments, with a deadline of 3rd June.