According to the Wall Street Journal (WSJ), the U.S. Treasury is investigating $165 million worth of cryptocurrency transactions registered with U.S. entities that may have supported Hamas before the October 7 attack on Israel.
W.S.J. reported, citing a report submitted to Congress by the Treasury Department’s Financial Crimes Enforcement Network, which said it had investigated reports of suspicious activity over the past three years potentially used in transactions involving armed groups. According to the report, the exact amount of cryptocurrency used by Hamas is unclear.
FinCEN said in its letter that the use of cryptocurrencies by armed groups may be overstated because only a small proportion of transactions reported by financial institutions can be linked to Hamas.
U.S. lawmakers have been discussing the role of cryptocurrencies in financing terrorism as part of efforts to sanction Palestinian militant groups. National Assembly group led by members of the National Assembly previously requested For additional data on Hamas’ cryptocurrency use, please contact President Joe Biden.
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About the author
Danny Park is The Block’s East Asia reporter, writing about topics including Web3 development and cryptocurrency regulation in the region. He previously worked as a reporter for Forkast.News, where he actively covered the fall of Terra-Luna and FTX. Based in Seoul, Danny previously produced written and video content for media companies in Korea, Hong Kong, and China. He holds a Bachelor’s degree in Journalism and Business Marketing from the University of Hong Kong.