Crypto ATM / kiosk operator in Benin

For BJ AML purposes, institutions must identify customers and (where required) beneficial owners and verify their identities on a risk‑based basis, which may be satisfied by customer certifications or existing reliable information; independent source documents such as national ID cards, passports, driver’s licenses, or proof of address are no longer mandatorily required in every case but are expected where the risk profile or inconsistencies warrant stronger verification.

For legal entities, obtain and record basic information such as the company name, proof of incorporation, legal form, registered office address, and the identity of directors; beneficial ownership information should also be identified and verified under applicable AML/KYC rules, but it is not generally available through ordinary public company-search tools.

Beneficial Ownership: Identify and take reasonable measures to verify the identity of the beneficial owner(s) of the customer.

Purpose and Intended Nature of Business: Understand the purpose and intended nature of the business relationship.

Ongoing Monitoring: Conduct ongoing due diligence on the business relationship and scrutinize transactions to ensure they are consistent with the VASP's knowledge of the customer, their business, and risk profile.

Risk-Based Approach: Apply a risk-based approach, meaning enhanced due diligence (EDD) for higher-risk situations (e.g., customers from high-risk jurisdictions, politically exposed persons - PEPs, complex transactions) and simplified due diligence (SDD) for lower-risk situations.

"Travel Rule" (FATF Recommendation 16): While implementation varies, VASPs are expected to obtain and transmit required originator and beneficiary information for virtual asset transfers (above a certain threshold), similar to traditional wire transfers.

Obligation to Report: Any VASP that suspects or has reasonable grounds to suspect that funds are the proceeds of a criminal activity, or are related to terrorist financing, must report promptly to the FIU.

No Tipping-Off: VASPs and their employees are prohibited from disclosing to the customer or third parties that an STR is being or has been filed.

Duration: Records of transactions and customer identification data must generally be kept for at least five (5) years after the business relationship is terminated or after the date of the transaction.

Availability: Records must be sufficient to permit the reconstruction of individual transactions and be made available to competent authorities upon request.

Benin’s Financial Intelligence Unit (FIU) is the Cellule Nationale de Traitement des Informations Financières (CENTIF). CENTIF is an administrative financial intelligence unit under the Minister of Finance, with financial and decision-making autonomy, responsible for receiving, analyzing, enriching and transmitting suspicious transaction reports and other relevant financial information to competent authorities for the purposes of combating money laundering and terrorist financing, and for coordinating and supporting national AML/CFT policy and strategy.

Central Bank of West African States (BCEAO): While the BCEAO is the central bank for UEMOA member states and regulates traditional financial institutions, it has issued warnings and statements regarding cryptocurrencies. It would likely be involved in any future licensing or specific regulatory framework for VASPs in the region.

Regional Regulation: Benin is part of the West African Economic and Monetary Union (UEMOA), and the primary financial regulator for its member states is the Banque Centrale des États de l'Afrique de l'Ouest (BCEAO). The BCEAO issues directives that apply across all member countries, including Benin.

Developing Frameworks: Many African nations, including Benin, are still in the early stages of developing comprehensive regulatory frameworks specifically for cryptocurrencies. Enforcement often takes the form of general warnings or actions against broad financial fraud rather than specific crypto licensing violations.

Limited Public Reporting: Unlike jurisdictions with mature financial markets (e.g., USA, EU), individual enforcement actions, especially those involving relatively smaller sums or entities, are often not widely publicized by regulators in Benin or the wider UEMOA region.

Focus on Fraud: When actions occur, they are often initiated by law enforcement (police, judicial authorities) against individuals or groups involved in pyramid schemes or investment fraud using cryptocurrencies, rather than by a financial regulator against a crypto service provider for regulatory non-compliance.

The BCEAO’s regulatory stance on crypto‑actifs in Benin has been updated; the earlier communiqué no longer reflects current enforcement deadlines.

As of March 2026, the BCEAO has authorized only two structures for payment services in Benin, per its official publication.

Police or judicial actions against individuals for fraud or Ponzi schemes where cryptocurrency was the means rather than the specific regulatory violation.

Formal legal enforcement against refusal of BCEAO banknotes and coins is now in place, superseding informal warnings.

As a UEMOA member, Benin is subject to regional AML/CFT instruments that are incorporated into national law. Directive No. 02/2015/CM/UEMOA of 29 September 2015 on the fight against money laundering and terrorist financing did supersede earlier directives and provided a regional framework for national transposition, but it has since been complemented and effectively operationalized by a uniform AML/CFT law adopted by UEMOA (notably via Decision n°26 of 02/07/2015/CM/UEMOA), which now serves as the main binding reference guiding member states’ legislation, including Benin’s. Any up‑to‑date description should therefore refer to both the 2015 Directive and the subsequent uniform law, rather than the Directive alone as the guiding instrument.