House Dems request Trump admin. briefing on crypto seized from terrorists

On Monday, two Democratic Representatives asked the Trump administration to provide more information on cryptocurrency recently seized from terrorists.

According to an Aug. 26 report by The Hill, the request is related to the millions of dollars in crypto assets that the U.S. Department of Justice seized from several terror organizations. Organizations involved included Al-Qaeda, ISIS, Hamas and al-Qassam.

The request was initiated by Emanuel Cleaver — chairman of the House Financial Services Subcommittee on National Security, International Development and Monetary Policy — and subcommittee member Josh Gottheimer. Together, they requested information about the operation from Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin and Attorney General William Barr. Their request reads:

“It is vital that Members of the Subcommittee on National Security, International Development and Monetary Policy receive a briefing, at the appropriate classification level, on this action, the largest ever seizure of online terrorist financing, from the Department of Justice, the Department of the Treasury on this investigation.”

Furthermore, the request also asks the Treasury Department to provide an assessment of its efforts to tackle malicious actors who attempt to target the United States’ financial systems. 

The document clearly states that this information is needed to understand what kind of regulation is needed to limit the illicit use of crypto:

“This will further inform the Subcommittee on what legislative actions we should be undertaking to provide regulators and law enforcement the proper resources and tools to continue to address the illicit use of cryptocurrency and disrupt terrorist organizations’ financial networks.”