31 U.S.C. § 5330

Registration of money transmitting businesses

Read at: OLRCuscode.house.gov CornellLII GovInfogovinfo.gov JustiaTitle 31 CasesGoogle Scholar

(a)Registration With Secretary of the Treasury Required.—(1)In general.—Any person who owns or controls a money transmitting business shall register the business (whether or not the business is licensed as a money transmitting business in any State) with the Secretary of the Treasury not later than the end of the 180-day period beginning on the later of—(A) the date of enactment of the Money Laundering Suppression Act of 1994; or(B) the date on which the business is established.(2)Form and manner of registration.—Subject to the requirements of subsection (b), the Secretary of the Treasury shall prescribe, by regulation, the form and manner for registering a money transmitting business pursuant to paragraph (1).(3)Businesses remain subject to state law.—This section shall not be construed as superseding any requirement of State law relating to money transmitting businesses operating in such State.(4)False and incomplete information.—The filing of false or materially incomplete information in connection with the registration of a money transmitting business shall be considered as a failure to comply with the requirements of this subchapter.(b)Contents of Registration.—The registration of a money transmitting business under subsection (a) shall include the following information:(1) The name and location of the business.(2) The name and address of each person who—(A) owns or controls the business;(B) is a director or officer of the business; or(C) otherwise participates in the conduct of the affairs of the business.(3) The name and address of any depository institution at which the business maintains a transaction account (as defined in section 19(b)(1)(C) of the Federal Reserve Act).(4) An estimate of the volume of business in the coming year (which shall be reported annually to the Secretary).(5) Such other information as the Secretary of the Treasury may require.(c)Agents of Money Transmitting Businesses.—(1)Maintenance of lists of agents of money transmitting businesses.—Pursuant to regulations which the Secretary of the Treasury shall prescribe, each money transmitting business shall—(A) maintain a list containing the names and addresses of all persons authorized to act as an agent for such business in connection with activities described in subsection (d)(1)(A) and such other information about such agents as the Secretary may require; and(B) make the list and other information available on request to any appropriate law enforcement agency.(2)Treatment of agent as money transmitting business.—The Secretary of the Treasury shall prescribe regulations establishing, on the basis of such criteria as the Secretary determines to be appropriate, a threshold point for treating an agent of a money transmitting business as a money transmitting business for purposes of this section.(d)Definitions.—For purposes of this section, the following definitions shall apply:(1)Money transmitting business.—The term “money transmitting business” means any business other than the United States Postal Service which—(A) provides check cashing, currency exchange, or money transmitting or remittance services, or issues or redeems money orders, travelers’ checks, and other similar instruments or any other person who engages as a business in the transmission of currency, funds, or value that substitutes for currency, including any person who engages as a business in an informal money transfer system or any network of people who engage as a business in facilitating the transfer of money domestically or internationally outside of the conventional financial institutions system;(B) is required to file reports under section 5313; and(C) is not a depository institution (as defined in section 5313(g)).(2)Money transmitting service.—The term “money transmitting service” includes accepting currency, funds, or value that substitutes for currency and transmitting the currency, funds, or value that substitutes for currency by any means, including through a financial agency or institution, a Federal reserve bank or other facility of the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System, or an electronic funds transfer network.(e)Civil Penalty for Failure To Comply With Registration Requirements.—(1)In general.—Any person who fails to comply with any requirement of this section or any regulation prescribed under this section shall be liable to the United States for a civil penalty of $5,000 for each such violation.(2)Continuing violation.—Each day a violation described in paragraph (1) continues shall constitute a separate violation for purposes of such paragraph.(3)Assessments.—Any penalty imposed under this subsection shall be assessed and collected by the Secretary of the Treasury in the manner provided in section 5321 and any such assessment shall be subject to the provisions of such section.(Added Pub. L. 103–325, title IV, § 408(b), Sept. 23, 1994, 108 Stat. 2250; amended Pub. L. 107–56, title III, § 359(b), Oct. 26, 2001, 115 Stat. 328; Pub. L. 116–283, div. F, title LXI, § 6102(d)(2), Jan. 1, 2021, 134 Stat. 4553.)Editorial NotesReferences in Text

The date of enactment of the Money Laundering Suppression Act of 1994, referred to in subsec. (a)(1)(A), is the date of enactment of title IV of Pub. L. 103–325, which was approved Sept. 23, 1994.

Section 19(b)(1)(C) of the Federal Reserve Act, referred to in subsec. (b)(3), is classified to section 461(b)(1)(C) of Title 12, Banks and Banking.

Amendments

2021—Subsec. (d)(1)(A). Pub. L. 116–283, § 6102(d)(2)(A), substituted “currency, funds, or value that substitutes for currency,” for “funds,” and “system;” for “system;;”.

Subsec. (d)(2). Pub. L. 116–283, § 6102(d)(2)(B), substituted “currency, funds, or value that substitutes for currency” for “currency or funds denominated in the currency of any country” after “accepting”, substituted “currency, funds, or value that substitutes for currency” for “currency or funds, or the value of the currency or funds,” after “transmitting the”, and inserted “, including” after “means”.

2001—Subsec. (d)(1)(A). Pub. L. 107–56 inserted before semicolon “or any other person who engages as a business in the transmission of funds, including any person who engages as a business in an informal money transfer system or any network of people who engage as a business in facilitating the transfer of money domestically or internationally outside of the conventional financial institutions system;”.

Statutory Notes and Related SubsidiariesFindings and Purposes

Pub. L. 103–325, title IV, § 408(a), Sept. 23, 1994, 108 Stat. 2249, provided that:“(1)Findings.—The Congress hereby finds the following:“(A) Money transmitting businesses are subject to the recordkeeping and reporting requirements of subchapter II of chapter 53 of title 31, United States Code.“(B) Money transmitting businesses are largely unregulated businesses and are frequently used in sophisticated schemes to—“(i) transfer large amounts of money which are the proceeds of unlawful enterprises; and“(ii) evade the requirements of such subchapter II, the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 [26 U.S.C. 1 et seq.], and other laws of the United States.“(C) Information on the identity of money transmitting businesses and the names of the persons who own or control, or are officers or employees of, a money transmitting business would have a high degree of usefulness in criminal, tax, or regulatory investigations and proceedings.“(2)Purpose.—It is the purpose of this section [enacting this section and amending section 1960 of Title 18, Crimes and Criminal Procedure] to establish a registration requirement for businesses engaged in providing check cashing, currency exchange, or money transmitting or remittance services, or issuing or redeeming money orders, travelers’ checks, and other similar instruments to assist the Secretary of the Treasury, the Attorney General, and other supervisory and law enforcement agencies to effectively enforce the criminal, tax, and regulatory laws and prevent such money transmitting businesses from engaging in illegal activities.”

Notes of Decisions

Cited in 29 cases (6 in the last 5 years), 2004–2026 · leading case: United States v. E-Gold, Ltd., 550 F. Supp. 2d 82 (D.D.C. 2008).

Sort: Relevance Newest Treatment

United States v. E-Gold, Ltd., 550 F. Supp. 2d 82 (D.D.C. 2008). · cites it 11× “The only definition in the United States Code for a “money transmitting business” per se is at 31 U.S.C. § 5330 . Section 5330 defines a money transmitting business as one that, inter alia, is required to report certain cash or currency transactions to the Internal Revenue…”

United States v. Talebnejad, 342 F. Supp. 2d 346 (D. Maryland 2004). · cites it 13× “t’s charge that, from in or about December 2000 through in or about December 2002, Defendants conspired to violate the law regarding the operation of money transmitting businesses (Count I), either because the businesses were unlicensed by the State of Maryland or because…”

United States v. Mazza-Alaluf, 621 F.3d 205 (2d Cir. 2010). · cites it 4× “§ 1960 (b)(1)(A), it concluded that the government had not proved Mazza-Alaluf guilty of failing to comply with federal money transmitting registration requirements codified at 31 U.S.C. § 5330 , see 18 U.S.C. § 1960 (b)(1)(B).”

United States v. Banki, 685 F.3d 99 (2d Cir. 2011). · cites it 2× “; (B) fails to comply with the money transmitting business registration requirements under [ 31 U.S.C. § 5330 , which require money-transmitting businesses to register with the Secretary of the Treasury] .”

United States v. Uddin, 365 F. Supp. 2d 825 (E.D. Mich. 2005). · cites it 7× “” Defendant does not dispute that he operated a money transmitting business nor does he dispute that the business was not registered with the Secretary of Treasury as required under 31 U.S.C. § 5330 . Defendant, however, maintains that, in addition to alleging that he operated a…”

United States v. Mazza-Alaluf, 607 F. Supp. 2d 484 (S.D.N.Y. 2009). · cites it 5× “§ 1960 and 31 U.S.C. § 5330 . Section 1960 makes it a crime to “fail[ ] to comply with the money transmitting business registration requirements under section 5330 of title 31, United States Code, or regulations prescribed under such section[.”

United States v. Talebnejad, 460 F.3d 563 (4th Cir. 2006). · cites it 8× “The businesses were not licensed under Maryland law, nor were they registered pursuant to 31 U.S.C.A. § 5330 (West 2003). In UNITED STATES v.”

United States v. Murgio, 209 F. Supp. 3d 698 (S.D.N.Y. 2016). “mx “failed to comply with the money transmitting business registration requirements set forth in [ 31 U.S.C. § 5330 ] and the regulations prescribed thereunder,” in violation of 18 U.”

United States v. Dimitrov, 546 F.3d 409 (7th Cir. 2008). · cites it 2× “ness” means a money transmitting business which affects interstate or foreign commerce in any manner or degree and— (A) is intentionally operated without an appropriate money transmitting license in a State where such operation is punishable as a misdemeanor or felony under…”

In re a Warrant for All Content & Other Info. Associated with the Email Account xxxxxxx@ Gmail.com Maintained at Premises Controlled by Google, Inc., 33 F. Supp. 3d 386 (S.D.N.Y. 2014). “§§ 371 (conspiracy to commit unlawful money remitting) and 1956 (conspiracy to commit money laundering), the Government brought an application for a search warrant seeking records relating to a “Gmail” email address, which is maintained and controlled by Google.”

Tay v. Green, 2022 OK 37 (Okla. 2022). · cites it 2× “" The statute references 31 U.S.C. § 5330 (2018 & Supp. 2020), which defines "money transmitting business" as follows: any business other than the United States Postal Service which-- (A) provides check cashing, currency exchange, or money transmitting or remittance services, or…”

United States v. $215, 587.22 in U.S. Currency, 306 F. Supp. 3d 213 (D.C. Cir. 2018). “Section 1960(b)(1)(B) As noted above, § 1960's federal-registration offense, § 1960(b)(1)(B), defines an unlicensed money transmitting business as a "money transmitting business which affects interstate or foreign commerce" and "fails to comply with registration requirements"…”

United States v. Keleta, 441 F. Supp. 2d 1 (D.D.C. 2006). · cites it 3× “1 The *2 court in Talebnejad held “that 31 U.S.C. § 5330 by implication also incorporates a mens rea requirement, i.”

United States v. Banki, 660 F.3d 665 (2d Cir. 2011). · cites it 2× “; (B) fails to comply with the money transmitting business registration requirements under [ 31 U.S.C. § 5330 , which require money-transmitting businesses to register with the Secretary of the Treasury] .”

United States v. $1,399,313.74 in United States Currency, 592 F. Supp. 2d 495 (S.D.N.Y. 2008). “§ 5330 (a)(1) ("Any person who owns or controls a money transmitting business shall register the business (whether or not the business is licensed as a money transmitting business in any State) with the Secretary of the Treasury” not later than 180 days after the business…”

United States v. Harmon (D.D.C. 2020). · cites it 10× “31 U.S.C. § 5330 (a)(1). According to Count Two, defendant violated § 1960(a) by (a) operating Helix without the appropriate money transmitting license in the District, where failure to obtain the proper license is a felony, see D.”

United States v. Twenty Thousand Three Hundred & Ninety Two Dollars in United States Currency ($20,392.00), 546 F. Supp. 2d 302 (D.V.I. 2008). “The Claimant later pled guilty to Count I of the indictment, which charged her with knowingly conducting, controlling, managing, directing or owning all or part of an unlicensed money transmitting business, which affected foreign commerce, without complying with the registration…”

United States of Am. v. Ian Freeman, 2023 DNH 106P (D.N.H. 2023). · cites it 6× “Specifically, in 2013, FinCEN issued guidance opining that an “exchanger” of virtual currency (as defined in FinCEN’s regulations) that “(1) accepts and transmits a convertible virtual currency or (2) buys or sells convertible virtual currency for any reason is a money…”

United States v. Freeman (1st Cir. 2025). · cites it 3× “272 , 328 (2001) (codified as amended at 31 U.S.C. § 5330 (d)(1)). In this language difference lies the rub of Freeman's grievance.”

United States v. Goklu (2d Cir. 2026). · cites it 3× “As relevant here, an “unlicensed money transmitting business” includes a money transmitting business that “fails to comply with the money transmitting business registration requirements” under 31 U.S.C. § 5330 or its implementing regulations.”

United States v. Harmon (D.D.C. 2021). · cites it 2× “1, by operating a money transmitting business without an appropriate money transmitting license in the District of Columbia (“state licensing” prong), under §1960(b)(1)(A), and failing to comply with the money transmitting business registration requirements of the Bank Secrecy…”

United States v. $510,000 United States Currency (W.D. Ark. 2022). · cites it 2× “31 U.S.C. § 5330 requires that a money transmitting business be registered with the Secretary of the Treasury and defines “money transmitting business” as any business other than the United States Postal Service which— (A) provides check cashing, currency exchange, or money…”

In re Ripple Labs Inc. Litig. (N.D. Cal. 2020). “Sales Acknowledged in Defendants’ May 2015 Settlement 22 Agreement 23 In May 2015, defendant Ripple and defendant XRP II entered a settlement 24 agreement with the United States Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of California 25 (“USAO”) for violation of the Bank…”

United States v. Banki, 660 F.3d 665 (2d Cir. 2012). “; see 31 U.S.C. § 5330 (a)(1) ("Any person who owns or controls a money transmitting business shall register the business (whether or not the business is licensed as a money transmitting business in any State) with the Secretary of the Treasury .”

United States v. Banki, 660 F.3d 665 (2d Cir. 2012). “; see 31 U.S.C. § 5330 (a)(1) ("Any person who owns or controls a money transmitting business shall register the - 28 - business (whether or not the business is licensed as a money transmitting business in any State) with the Secretary of the Treasury .”

United States v. Donald Hellinger, 538 F. App'x 211 (3rd Cir. 2013). “PPC did not register with the United States Department of the Treasury as a money-transmitting business, as required by 31 U.S.C. § 5330 . After Appellants pled guilty, the District Court determined that U.”

United States v. Rahman, 417 F. Supp. 2d 725 (E.D.N.C. 2006). “The court analyzed only the definitional prong in section 1960(b)(1)(B) relating to the failure to abide by the requirements of 31 U.S.C. § 5330 . Id. at 826 . Unlike Uddin , the indictment in this ease alleges only that the defendants were not in compliance with state licensing…”

United States v. Dimitrov, Stefan (7th Cir. 2008). “Under the amended § 1960, the government no longer need prove that a defendant was aware of state licensing requirements or that he knew about the federal registration requirements found at 31 U.S.C. § 5330 (requiring owners or controllers of money transmitting businesses to…”

— 31 U.S.C. § 5330(d)(1)(B) — 1 case

United States v. Mazza-Alaluf, 607 F. Supp. 2d 484 (S.D.N.Y. 2009). “§ 1960 and 31 U.S.C. § 5330 . Section 1960 makes it a crime to “fail[ ] to comply with the money transmitting business registration requirements under section 5330 of title 31, United States Code, or regulations prescribed under such section[.”

— 31 U.S.C. § 5330(d)(2) — 1 case

United States v. Goklu (2d Cir. 2026). “As relevant here, an “unlicensed money transmitting business” includes a money transmitting business that “fails to comply with the money transmitting business registration requirements” under 31 U.S.C. § 5330 or its implementing regulations.”

Annotations are extracted automatically from the opinions in the Syfert caselaw corpus and ranked by authority, recency, and treatment. Dots show Syfertize treatment of the citing case itself.