The Biden administration is reportedly planning a wide range of crypto oversight and might issue an executive order for the agencies regarding the same. The Executive order in making is targeted at combatting the growing threat of ransomware and other cybercrime associated with crypto assets. Over the past year, Ransomware has caused millions in damages, the Colonial Pipeline incident being one of the glaring ones.
The White House National Security Council spokeswoman confirmed that NSC and NEC are working together to keep a check on the illicit use of crypto assets especially for ransomware attacks, which have increased with each passing year. The spokeswoman said,
“The NSC and NEC are coordinating across the interagency to look at ways we can ensure that crypto currency and other digital assets are not used to prop up bad actors, including ransom ware criminals,”
Biden Administration has also announced the first sanctions in crypto-ransomware attacks last month where it blacklisted a Russian-owned cryptocurrency exchange, called SUEX. The White House has also instructed the US national security advisers to collaborate with officials from 30 other countries to combat ransomware attacks. The plan also involves recovering previous thefts and ransoms in crypto attacks.
The regulatory oversight on the crypto market has been the topic of debate for months now, with several lawmakers calling for strict measures while many others advocating for better regulations to help the crypto market grow. Biden administration’s policies and tune on crypto haven’t pleased many, but the recent reassurance from the Federal Chairman and SEC chief that the US has no plans of putting a blanket ban on crypto-like China gave crypto proponents a sigh of relief.
Biden Administration Launches National Cryptocurrency Enforcement Team
Biden administration might not have any plans of banning crypto but that doesn’t necessarily mean it would also get a regulatory free pass. Recently, the Department of Justice (DOJ) unveiled a crypto crackdown task force.
The new task force would look into various crypto exchanges especially those that offer crypto mixing services to keep a check on illicit crypto transactions.
“Today we are launching the National Cryptocurrency Enforcement Team to draw on the Department’s cyber and money laundering expertise to strengthen our capacity to dismantle the financial entities that enable criminal actors to flourish — and quite frankly to profit — from abusing cryptocurrency platforms,” Deputy Attorney General Lisa Monaco said Wednesday evening in a statement.
