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🇺🇸 Meet the Crypto-Enforcers: US Department of Justice Establishes Interagency National Enforcement Unit
Washington DC is engulfed in a crypto-rush of regulatory and police responses to illegal and criminal activity, and the US Department of Justice (DoJ) now has significant powers to effectively enforce the US regulatory and compliance framework.
Deputy Attorney General Lisa Monaco discovered a new National Cryptocurrency Enforcement Team (NCET), charged with proactively investigating and prosecuting the criminal misuse of cryptoassets. The NCET will also oversee the recovery of ill-gotten gains from crime resulting from fraud, extortion and ransomware.
NCET will supervise Assistant State Attorney Kenneth Polite Jr. and will focus on crimes committed by cryptoasset exchanges, as well as companies operating as mixers or processors.
Recruitment has begun at NCET and the work will primarily be supported by subject matter experts from the Department of Justice’s Money Laundering and Asset Recovery Division, as well as the Computer Crime and Intellectual Property Division, along with representatives from the US Attorney’s Offices.
Last October, the Department of Justice announced its Cryptocurrency enforcement framework who detailed an interagency strategic plan for aggressive investigations and prosecutions. The newly established NCET puts this framework into action. Elliptic previously summarized what you need to know about the frame here.
At Elliptic, we welcome NCET and support its goals and mission. Most cryptoasset companies work hard to implement appropriate compliance controls and use Elliptic software to ensure they remain compliant with all updates to the regulatory framework. We are ready to support businesses looking to strengthen their compliance programs.
Contact us for a demo and to learn more about how Elliptic’s leading blockchain analytics solutions can help your business meet and exceed regulatory requirements.
🇧🇷 Brazil will introduce tougher penalties for crypto crimes
The government of Brazil passed a account which increases the size of fines imposed for financial crimes involving cryptoassets. The account increases the monetary amounts and also includes additional regulatory changes related to cryptocurrency trading and payments. Brazil hopes to curb cryptocurrency scams and crimes that have become more prevalent as bitcoin grows in popularity across the country.
🇺🇦 EUROPOL arrested Ukrainian ransomware operators
European Union Agency for Law Enforcement Cooperation (EUROPOL) announced the arrest of two unnamed Ukrainian ransomware operators who charged victims in between €5 to €70 million euros for decrypting locked files. EUROPOL’s cybercrime unit worked in tandem with law enforcement officers from Ukraine, France, the US, as well as Interpol. Cash, luxury vehicles and $1.3 million in crypto-assets were seized.
🇺🇸 From Congress: Introducing new legislation to establish a safe harbor for digital tokens
The ranking member of the House Financial Services Committee, Patrick McHenry, is introduced the Digital Token Clarity Act of 2021. The goal of the bill is to establish a three-year safe harbor for token development teams without the need to register with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). Developers should disclose requirements such as source code, development plans, and launch details, as well as submit robust output reports that demonstrate decentralization. This law builds on a previously proposed framework put forward by the so-called Crypto Mom, Hester Peirce.
🇺🇸 More from Congress: Ransomware Disclosure Act
US Senator Elizabeth Warren and Representative Deborah Ross introduced a new bill called Law on Disclosure of Ransom. The law allows the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) to access ransomware payment data, gaining a deeper understanding of how cybercriminals work to exploit ransomware opportunities. The account is a data engine, designed to enrich DHS’s approach to numbers and analysis. It will mandate victims of ransomware to disclose ransomware payments within 48 hours of payment, require DHS to share information retrospectively on an annual basis, and design a website to facilitate individual reporting.
The Crypto Decoded Podcast is now available
The fourth episode of our new podcast: Crypto Decoded is now available, along with the previous three episodes, on Spotify.
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