- U.S. lawmakers have urged the DOJ to act against Binance.
- The call follows reports that the terrorists might have moved funds through the exchange.
- The lawmakers also called for expedited investigations into Tether.
Binance, the world’s largest crypto exchange by trading volume, has been caught in the middle of the war against crypto-funded terrorism.
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Following reports that the Islamic group Hamas raised millions in crypto and used various platforms to move the funds for its operations that led to a direct attack on Israel, two U.S. lawmakers have called on the Department of Justice (DOJ) to take “swift” action against Binance.
DOJ Urged to Act Against Binance
In a letter addressed to U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland on October 26, Senator Cynthia Lummis and Representative French Hill asked the DOJ to arrive at a “charging decision on Binance” and “expeditiously conclude” investigations into Tether’s alleged involvement in illicit activities.
Notably, the lawmakers alleged that Binance and Tether are actively providing material support and resources to enable crypto-funded terrorism through circumvention of applicable sanctions laws and violations of the Bank Secrecy Act.
“While some reports claim Binance is now cooperating with Israeli law enforcement, this is immaterial to criminal culpability because Binance is only doing so after knowingly allowing its exchange to be used by terrorist organizations, and only after they have been caught,” the letter read.
On Tether’s part, the lawmakers claimed that the stablecoin issuer has failed to conduct adequate customer due diligence and screenings despite being aware that extremist groups are leveraging its product to facilitate terrorism and other illicit activities.
The October 26 letter follows another one by a bipartisan group, pressing the government to address crypto-funded terrorism concerns.
The War Against Crypto-Funded Terrorism
On October 18, 102 U.S. lawmakers led by Senator Elizabeth Warren wrote to President Biden’s administration and urged the government to combat the use of crypto in funding terrorism.
Unlike the recent letter that urged the DOJ to take action on specific crypto-focused firms, the letter by Senator Warren’s group sought to elicit more information on the “bad actors” enabling crypto-funded terrorism, among them Binance.
Read why Changpeng Zhao’s crypto fortune might be under threat:
CZ’s Crypto Fortune Shaken as Trading Slump Wipes $11.9B
Stay updated on CZ’s and Binance’s response to the CFTC lawsuit:
Binance, Changpeng Zhao Renew Bid to Toss CFTC Lawsuit
