US Lawmakers Urge Justice Department to Consider Charges Against Binance and Tether for Alleged Terrorism Financing
Summary:
U.S. Senator Cynthia Lummis and Representative French Hill have requested the Department of Justice to consider indictment charges against crypto exchange Binance and Tether, alleging their potential involvement in facilitating terrorism financing. Their call follows the recent terrorist attacks on Israel by Hamas, which they suggest were partly funded by illicit cryptocurrency transactions. They urged the Justice Department to decisively conclude investigations into Binance and Tether's supposed illegal activities, although they acknowledged that not all players in the crypto arena are unscrupulous. The lawmakers' stance comes despite a statement from blockchain analytics firm Elliptic, countering claims of significant crypto payments funding Hamas' attacks.
In the wake of recent hostilities between the terrorist group Hamas and Israel, U.S. Senator Cynthia Lummis, known for her support for cryptocurrencies and representing Wyoming, and Arkansas Representative French Hill, have formally requested the U.S. Department of Justice to weigh indictment charges against Binance, a leading cryptocurrency exchange. The lawmakers suggested in their letter of October 26 to U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland that Binance, along with another crypto platform, Tether, might have been involved in suspect activities, including possibly facilitating the financing of terrorism via illicit crypto transactions.
Lummis and Hill, in their communiqué following the coordinated attacks on Israel by Hamas on October 7, particularly emphasized the need for a swift resolution of ongoing inquiries into Binance and Tether's suspicious dealings. They expressed strong favor for stringent Justice Department measures to thwart such platforms' potential facilitation of terrorist funding.
Despite acknowledging that not all players in the cryptocurrency landscape are unscrupulous, Lummis and Hill asserted that those found guilty of illicit activities, including Binance and Tether in this context, need to be promptly held accountable. They insisted on the importance of maintaining vigilance over such 'bad actors' that potentially exploit this novel technology for malevolent ends.
In contrast to Senator Elizabeth Warren and some other congresspersons who have previously hinted at associations between cryptocurrency transactions and terror activities, these two Republican lawmakers did not accuse the entire crypto industry of potential connections. Instead, they adopted a more discerning perspective, recognizing that a significant number of crypto platforms endeavor to operate within the ambit of U.S. financial regulations fully, viewing such adherence as a positive step towards realizing the potential of cryptocurrencies and distributed ledger ledgers.
Meanwhile, subsequent to the terrorist incidents of October 7, Israeli law enforcement agencies prompted Binance to freeze accounts connected with Hamas. However, Lummis and Hill dismissed this as a belated response, opining that Binance was eventually compelled to act on the issue not out of sincerity but of necessity.
In a related development, Elliptic, a blockchain analytics firm, released an official statement on October 25 directly addressing U.S. lawmakers and media outlets. Its statement, contesting popular narratives, stated that there was no tangible evidence to suggest that any considerable cryptocurrency transactions backed the Hamas strikes against Israel.
Published At
10/26/2023 9:59:49 PM
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