The Justice Department has directed prosecutors to ease litigation against people committing fraud with digital currency, the latest example of the Trump administration pulling back on white-collar crime enforcement.
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In a memo sent to the Justice Department on Monday night, Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche said the department will no longer participate in regulation in the digital asset space and will instead focus on crimes that people commit with cryptocurrency, such as dealing narcotics and human trafficking.
Justice Department prosecutors are still directed to pursue cases against people who defraud investors.
Blanche also said he would disband the National Cryptocurrency Enforcement Team, which was established in 2022 to “address the challenge posed by the criminal misuse of cryptocurrencies and digital assets.” The team was composed of Justice Department attorneys with backgrounds in cryptocurrency, cybercrime and money laundering.
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In the first days of the Trump administration, officials had transferred the founding head of the enforcement team — national security prosecutor Eun Young Choi — to a less desirable position in a newly created sanctuary cities division.
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The memo is the Justice Department’s response to an executive order President Donald Trump issued in his first days in office that called on the Justice Department and other agencies to assess regulations and guidance that affect digital currency.
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In a memo sent to the Justice Department on Monday night, Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche said the department will no longer participate in regulation in the digital asset space and will instead focus on crimes that people commit with cryptocurrency, such as dealing narcotics and human trafficking.
Justice Department prosecutors are still directed to pursue cases against people who defraud investors.
Blanche also said he would disband the National Cryptocurrency Enforcement Team, which was established in 2022 to “address the challenge posed by the criminal misuse of cryptocurrencies and digital assets.” The team was composed of Justice Department attorneys with backgrounds in cryptocurrency, cybercrime and money laundering.
Advertisement
In the first days of the Trump administration, officials had transferred the founding head of the enforcement team — national security prosecutor Eun Young Choi — to a less desirable position in a newly created sanctuary cities division.
💻
Follow Technology
The memo is the Justice Department’s response to an executive order President Donald Trump issued in his first days in office that called on the Justice Department and other agencies to assess regulations and guidance that affect digital currency.
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