US Treasury Targets Bitcoin And XRP Growth—Big Win For Crypto?

The U.S. Department of the Treasury has taken actions targeting cryptocurrency exchanges “responsible for laundering ransoms” as part of the whole-of-government effort to counter ransomware. One cryptocurrency exchange has already been sanctioned along with related crypto addresses. “We will continue to crack down on malicious actors,” said Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen. US Government Targets Crypto Exchanges in Ransomware Fight The U.S. Treasury Department announced a set of actions to counter ransomware Tuesday, which include the publication of an....

Her Majesty’s Treasury in the U.K. issued a document that details a series of proposals addressing the crypto community. With the consultation, the Treasury is initiating a “regulatory approach to cryptoassets and stablecoins” for 2021 following the Brexit turmoil. Special Focus on Stablecoin Regulation According to the official announcement, the consultation mainly targets stablecoins to gather investments and wholesale uses. The HM Treasury expects to collect insights from the “industry and stakeholders” in the crypto sphere until March 21, 2021. In 2018,....

The U.S. Department of the Treasury does not see that cryptocurrency could be used in a large-scale way to evade sanctions. “Its share as a medium for illicit finance is not anywhere as large as just using cash,” a senior Treasury official noted. Treasury Department’s View on Crypto Use to Evade Sanctions Nellie Liang, Treasury undersecretary for domestic finance, talked about the potential use of cryptocurrency as a tool to evade sanctions for Russia Friday in an interview with Reuters. The senior Treasury official explained that the crypto....

The U.S. Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) has issued its first-ever sanctions on a crypto mixer. The mixing service was used by Lazarus Group to process illicit proceeds from the $620 million crypto heist of the online game Axie Infinity, said the Treasury Department. Treasury Department Sanctions Crypto Mixer The U.S. Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) announced Friday that it has sanctioned crypto mixer Blender.io (Blender). According to the OFAC, this mixing service is used by the Democratic....

The U.S. Department of the Treasury says that the growing use of crypto assets challenges the efficacy of American sanctions. “We are mindful of the risk that, if left unchecked, these digital assets and payments systems could harm the efficacy of our sanctions,” the Treasury Department explained. Treasury Says Crypto Threatens Efficacy of U.S. Sanctions The U.S. Department of the Treasury released its 2021 Sanctions Review Monday. “Technological innovations such as digital currencies, alternative payment platforms, and new ways of hiding cross-border transactions all....