A US senator has asked the DOJ to consider criminal charges against Binance and Tether.
US Senator Cynthia Lammis asked the Department of Justice (DOJ) to charge crypto exchange Binance and USDT issuer Tether with criminal charges.
Lummis mentions the role of the two companies in illegal fundraising for terrorism.
Blockchain security and analytics firm Elliptic called the WSJ report “misinformation.”
The US Department of Justice should complete its investigation and consider criminal charges against crypto exchange Binance and USDT stablecoin issuer Tether, US Senator Cynthia Lammis said.
Senator Cynthia Lammis (R-WY) said in a post on X today that the Department of Justice has sent a letter to the DOJ seeking to indict the two crypto companies as “intermediaries” in the illegal funding of Hamas.
When it comes to illegal finance, crypto isn't the enemy – it's the bad actors.
I sent a letter asking the DOJ to complete its investigation and file criminal charges against Binance and Tether after reports that they acted as proxies for Hamas and engaged in illegal activities. pic.twitter.com/M3KGNFkpWc
— Senator Cynthia Lummis (@SenLummis) October 26, 2023
The letter, signed by Representative French Hill, chairman of the House Financial Services Subcommittee, is part of a broader response to a recent Wall Street Journal report. The allegation in the report comes after several lawmakers acknowledged that Hamas raised millions of dollars in crypto funding ahead of its attacks on Israel earlier this month.
But blockchain analytics firm Elliptic said in a blog post published on October 25 that there is no evidence that “crypto fundraising” has raised more than $130 million as mentioned in the Wall Street Journal article.
Elliptic said the data and other platforms were “misinterpreted”.
Tether wants to fact-check the mainstream media
In an announcement this afternoon, Tether said its stance against crypto-terrorist financing is strong. However, he urged the government to “factually investigate” the misinformation on the subject.
The news release mentions stablecoin issuers cooperating with law enforcement, including Israel, to block funds destined for illegal activities.
“Crypto used by malicious actors (whether on demand or ill-equipped) is a small drop in the vast ocean that flows through the traditional financial industry. The deceptive WSJ article misled good actors with false information,” said Tether CEO Paolo Ardoino.
Nick Carter, a partner at Castle Island Ventures, says crypto needs to stand up for itself following recent regulatory developments. He shared on X:
Don't get me wrong. Journalists and senators lying about crypto financing terrorism and blaming it on us is an existential threat. If you win that information war, there is no limit to government aggression. We must win this war. The truth is on our side.
— nic 🌠 Carter (@nic__carter) October 25, 2023
Brian Armstrong, the founder and CEO of Coinbase, shares similar sentiments and believes that one of the steps to get here is a WSJ retraction or correction.
