Hamas cryptocurrency ties could add momentum to Senator Warren’s anti-crypto bill.

The recent revelation that an attack in southern Israel that killed 1,200 Israelis was allegedly funded in part by cryptocurrency added fuel to efforts by Senator Elizabeth Warren and others to advocate for crypto legislation.

Warren's bill, which has faced opposition from the Digital Chamber of Commerce over concerns it stifles innovation and market safety, seeks to expand the anti-money laundering requirements outlined in the Bank Secrecy Act (BSA) to include digital asset wallet providers, crypto miners. , authenticators and other network participants.

Although the bill is not expected to pass this year, the involvement of Hamas in the attack could strengthen Warren's argument.

“We believe this will materially improve the Digital Asset Anti-Money Laundering Act by 2023 because it will make it politically difficult for any legislator to stand in the way of crypto with a strong AML/BSA,” TD Cowen analyst Jarrett Seiberg said in a research note.

Although the bill was introduced in July, it has yet to make a significant difference in committee approval.

However, Senator Warren seized on the Hamas news to emphasize the urgency of his proposed measures.

“The fact that Hamas-linked digital wallets are accepting millions of dollars in cryptocurrencies is alarming and should be a wake-up call to lawmakers and regulators,” Warren said in a post on X (formerly Twitter).

Warren argued that arming law enforcement agencies with the necessary powers to combat crypto-financed crime is critical.

The bill was sponsored by Senator Joe Manchin (DW.V.), who has taken a central position on important legislative issues, as well as by Republican Senators Roger Marshall (R-Kan.) and Lindsey Graham (RS.C.).

Warren later received additional support from Sen. Dick Durbin (D-Ill.), chairman of the Judiciary Committee, and Sen. Gary Peters (D-Mich.), who chairs the Homeland Security Panel.

While the bill boasts influential supporters, it faces challenges to passage in the current Congress, where each party controls one chamber, the House of Representatives has no speaker and government funding expires on Nov. 17.

However, some of Warren's concerns about money laundering have been addressed in another legislative proposal, the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) of 2024.