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Changelly has begun stealing the deposited Monero and XEM tokens, of customers refusing to provide AML/KYC information, which was requested only after deposits were made. Changelly claims to have included an advisory notice in their user terms and conditions about the new AML/KYC requests for so-called ‘suspicious’ deposits. Many reddit users were highly critical of Changelly’s claims, and Changelly’s story changed to say that initially they did not have a notice but now they have a box that must be checked during the deposit process.
Redditors equate Changelly’s new policy with “Daylight Robbery”
Changelly’s policy is designed to take advantage of user’s who were unaware of a shift in the exchange’s requirements on AML/KYC. Changelly is using the weak excuse that these funds may be from a crime, so they must deanonymize users, and if they don’t consent Changelly keeps the funds for themselves.
They are targeting Monero users, because they value privacy and most likely will not dox themselves, creating a nice financial windfall for Changelly. Changelly’s explanation for this abhorrent behavior is that because the funds may be ‘possibly stolen’, they must protect their users by stealing the funds for themselves if the customer refuses to provide an unwarranted and intrusive level of personal information.
Due to the lack of regulation in the crypto industry worldwide, companies like Changelly can simply announce themselves financial investigators by decree and then legally steal your funds leaving you with no recourse, because they ‘suspect’ something ‘may have happened’.
Changelly users spearhead mass boycott over fraudulent application of new AML/KYC policy
Changelly users are upset with Changelly’s unethical AML/KYC policies, with many boycotting the exchange. They point out that if Changelly really wanted to prevent crime they could simply refuse service and refund the questionable funds, like any other financial institution does. After seeing the backlash faced by Eric Voorhees and Shapeshift based on their mandatory AML/KYC ‘memberships’ program, it was a very poor strategic move on Changelly’s part to begin robbing their customer base under the guise of AML/KYC and crime prevention. AML/KYC is a byproduct of the hysteria over the war on illicit drugs, and has been shown to be totally ineffective at prevent terrorism and crime. Furthermore, AML/KYC laws have created billions of unbanked people who are excluded from participating in the global economy.
