In a letter to U.S. Senators Sherrod Brown and Elizabeth Warren, Circle refuted false claims that it promoted illegal fundraising activities. It also said it does not provide banking services to Justin Sun, the TRON Foundation, or Huobi Global, now known as HTX.
“Circle does not directly or indirectly promote or finance Hamas (or any other illicit actor), and neither does Circle Bank Justin Sun,” the company said in the letter. “Neither Mr. Sun nor any entity owned or controlled by Mr. Sun, including the TRON Foundation or Huobi Global, currently has a Circle account.”
“To date, the U.S. government has not specifically designated Mr. Sun or his entities as Specially Designated Nationals,” the letter continued. “Nonetheless, Circle terminated all accounts held by Mr. Sun and his affiliates in February 2023.”
The TRON Foundation and HTX did not immediately respond to emailed requests for comment.
Cryptocurrency and terrorist financing under the microscope
Dante Disparte, the cryptocurrency finance company’s chief strategy officer and head of global policy, sent a letter to Senators Brown and Warren earlier this month refuting the “false claims” from the Campaign for Accountability. I wrote a letter for you. “Turn your attention to the role that cryptocurrency entrepreneur Justin Sun, his blockchain TRON, and US-based stablecoin issuer Circle may play in financing terrorist organizations.”
Claims that cryptocurrency organizations could play a role in facilitating the financing of terrorist groups have been a controversial topic ever since Hamas attacked Israel last month. The Securities and Exchange Commission sued Sun in March over the unregistered offer and sale of two “crypto asset securities.”
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About the author
RT Watson is a senior reporter at The Block, covering a variety of topics including US-based companies, blockchain games, NFTs, and more. He previously covered entertainment for The Wall Street Journal, writing about Disney, Netflix, Warner Bros. and the creator economy, focusing primarily on technological disruption across media. Previously, she covered corporate, economic and political news in Brazil at Bloomberg. She interviewed a variety of figures for RT, including CEOs, media moguls, top influencers, politicians, blue-collar workers, drug traffickers, and convicted criminals. She holds a Master’s degree in Digital Sociology.