US Justice Department to intensify vigil on crypto sector in aftermath of charges against FTX CEO Sam Bankman

Following the persecution of FTX CEO Sam Bankman-Fried, US Deputy Attorney General, Lisa Monaco, will be gearing up for cryptocurrency enforcement efforts with a 25-member national team. Monaco said that the department is already leading the criminal case against Fried and his associates in the case of defrauding equity investors in FTX Trading Ltd.

She said following the arrest of FTX CEO, the Justice department has started building expertise across the 93 U.S. attorney’s offices and is coordinating those efforts through a 25-member national cryptocurrency enforcement team. It will soon inform the Securities and Exchange Commission(SEC) which has a dedicated crypto enforcement team related to these efforts.

Monaco pointed out that the department is also making efforts to combat corporate crimes that can be committed by channeling cryptocurrencies into these sectors illegally. She said the department is keeping a vigil on the possible exploitation of the volatile crypto market and technology for ransomware, illicit purposes, money laundering and misleading investors.




The Justice department has also been investigating, leading crypto exchange, Finance for its role in illegal transactions worth $10 billion.

The US Justice Department oversees digital-asset markets as the digital assets aren’t supervised by any market regulator yet in the US. They can apply the existing laws to combat fraud and money laundering involving digital assets.

FAQs:

1. What was the criminal charge against FTX CEO, Sam Bankman-Fried?
   Fried was charged with misleading and defrauding nearly 90 US-based investors about the exchange and misusing their funds worth $1.8 million in undisclosed venture investments, lavish real estate purchases, and large political donations.
2. Does the US have dedicated crypto regulations?
   No, the US doesn’t have any dedicated crypto regulations yet. However, the government has laid down the guidelines for how cryptocurrency will function within the country. Various regulating bodies like SEC, Financial Stability Board(FSB) and The Treasury among others work in tandem to guide crypto companies and protect consumers from frauds.