Senator Elizabeth Warren has introduced a bill that furthers her cause to prevent Russia from evading sanctions using digital currencies. Dubbed the Digital Assets Sanctions Compliance Enhancement Act, the bill was introduced during a senate hearing on Russian entities sanctioned by the US government.
According to Warren, digital currencies still provide a loophole for evading punitive measures and sanctions. Because there is still sparse regulation governing the crypto space, it could be used to hide sanctionable assets. In addition, it could also act as a viable payment option for facilitating misdeeds. The senator said:
“Crypto provides a new payment option for criminals and cheats, and it’s how those who attack our systems with ransomware collect their money with the least risk that they will be caught.”
Furthermore, the US Senator from Massachusetts said that an overwhelming majority of “the money collected in ransomware attacks last year went to Russia-linked actors.”
Warren also explained that the war in Ukraine is more pressing now as it emphasizes the need for more blockchain space transparency.
The bill received co-sponsorship from ten other senators including Mark Warner, a Democratic senator representing Virginia. Warner was part of the bipartisan group that worked to incorporate crypto tax provisions in the infrastructure bill from September last year.
Naturally, witnesses from the crypto space were at odds with Senator Warren’s bill. For instance, they refused to agree with the senator’s assertion that Russians could evade sanctions using digital currencies.
Image Credits: Pixabay
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