A bipartisan group of U.S. senators introduced legislation on Thursday that would expand the Treasury Department’s sanctions authority to encompass more terrorist groups, including Hamas, and provide more resources to address cryptocurrency issues.
Sens. Mark Warner, D-Va., and Mike Rounds, R-S.D. Jack Reed, DR.I. And then-Rutaj Mitt Romney introduced the Terrorism Financing Prevention Act, which would expand the Treasury Department’s authority beyond the 2015 law that primarily focused on Hezbollah.
The new law allows the agency to identify and then sanction foreign financial institutions and foreign digital asset companies that knowingly facilitate the dealings of Hamas and other groups.
The potential use of cryptocurrencies to finance terrorism has been at the forefront of discussions regarding Hamas’ fundraising efforts in Washington since last October’s attack on Israel. Last month, the Ministry of Finance sent suggestion It called on lawmakers to provide more powers and sanctions tools to go after wrongdoers in the cryptocurrency industry.
“The October 7th attack on Israel by Hamas makes it even more urgent and necessary for the United States to address the role cryptocurrencies play in terrorist financing,” Senator Romney said in a statement. “It covers all terrorist organizations, including Hamas, and will equip the Treasury with additional resources to counter terrorism and address emerging threats related to digital assets.”
The bill also includes provisions of the Cryptocurrency National Security Enhancement and Enforcement (CANSEE) Act, which was introduced last July. The provision would give the Treasury Department’s Financial Crimes Enforcement Network the authority to:“We restrict transactions of major money laundering concerns that do not involve U.S. correspondent bank accounts,” the statement said.
Senator’s Effort to Shut Down Bad Actors in Crypto Industry
Other senators have sought to control the cryptocurrency industry and go after bad actors. Senator Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts has continued to push her own bill in her congressional hearings. This bill, called the Digital Asset Money Laundering Prevention Act, It aims to extend anti-money laundering requirements, including know-your-customer rules, to cryptocurrency miners, validators, wallet providers and others.
At a Senate Banking Committee hearing on Wednesday, Warren asked bank executives including JPMorgan Chase CEO Jamie Dimon, Wells Fargo & Company CEO Charles Scharf, Bank of America CEO Brian Moynihan and Goldman Sachs CEO David Solomon if they agreed with cryptocurrencies. It follows the same anti-money laundering rules that banks follow.
“Sure.” They all answered.
“It’s not often that I partner with the CEOs of multibillion-dollar banks on banking policy, but this is a matter of national security,” Warren said.
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