NAB Will Block Several Crypto Platforms To Protect Customers From Fraud

JAKARTA - On July 17, a large bank in Australia, the National Australia Bank (NAB), announced a series of new measures to protect customers from fraud. This is done as part of a "total bank scam strategy".

In addition to stopping millions of payments between March and July 2023, NAB will also block "some crypto platforms" to help protect customers from fraud.

NAB did not mention the names of crypto exchanges that are expected to be blocked from the bank. Chris Sheehan, NAB executive for group and fraud investigations, simply mentions that the new blocking will affect "high risk" platforms where "frauds are more common".

"These scammers are part of a cross-bordered crime group. Increasingly, we see them using crypto platforms to send stolen funds quickly and often abroad," Syehan said, quoted by Cointelegraph.

According to local reports, Sheehan hinted that the crypto blocking of the NAB could affect the Binance crypto exchange. "Our approach will be in accordance with other industries," he said as reported by the executive.

Over the past few months, other major Australian banks, including Westpac and Commonwealth Bank, have also reportedly blocked payments to Binance.NAB and Binance have not immediately responded to Cointelegraph's request for comment.

In its announcement, NAB continues to repeat the growing narrative among local banks, which suspects that nearly 50% of fraud funds reported in Australia are crypto-related.

"Broadly speaking, crypto fraud is one of the fastest growing security threats, with Australians losing more than $221 million to the scam last year," the NAB statement read.

The authority also argues that Australia's 40% population is "very willing" to pay later if that means "more protected from fraud."