Sen. Elizabeth Warren has further sounded the alarm about the evils of cryptocurrencies. This time she focused on cryptocurrency mining operations in Iran, which she claims are funding Hamas and other terrorist organizations around the world.
In an open letter to the Biden administration, co-written with Sen. Angus King, Warren urged the Secretary of Defense, Secretary of the Treasury, and White House National Security Adviser to “help Iran avoid rampant U.S. and international sanctions. I asked about the administration's efforts to counter the Through cryptocurrency (crypto) mining. ”
“Iran legalized its cryptocurrency mining industry in 2019,” Warren and King wrote. “Iran has raised millions of dollars over the past five years through cryptocurrency mining…allowing it to buy imports, move funds domestically and internationally, and finance Hamas and other terrorist organizations. It's a stable source of income.
“Ongoing activities by the Iranian government threaten national security,” the senators warned.
The letter cited an April 2022 International Monetary Fund (IMF) report stating that “mining energy-intensive blockchains like Bitcoin could allow countries to monetize their energy resources. However, some of them cannot be exported due to sanctions.”
Warren and King also referenced the February 2024 Chainalysis report. “More than 3 percent of all inflows to Iranian cryptocurrency exchanges, and more than 29 percent of all Bitcoin inflows, are estimated to come from mining pools,” they wrote.
Warren and King listed several questions for the Biden administration to answer regarding Iran's cryptocurrency activities. How much revenue have Iranian crypto miners made since 2021? What share has the government or its affiliates collected? And to what extent are these funds supporting terrorist or military activities? Is there one?
The senators also want to know what the administration has done to address the national security threat posed by cryptocurrency activity stemming from Iran's alleged sanctions evasion.
“Unless we take action, Iran will continue to use cryptocurrencies to fund attacks against Israel,” the senators said.
The letter to the White House is the latest salvo from Warren in an ongoing campaign to combat the use of cryptocurrencies in illegal activities.
In December, Warren called for changes to the Bank Secrecy Act to address the “threat” of cryptocurrencies, claiming that North Korea is using cryptocurrencies to finance its nuclear weapons program. And in April, Warren answered questions about how Congress can help fight crypto-funded child sexual abuse material (CSAM) to the U.S. Department of Justice and Homeland Security. I asked.
Edited by Ryan Ozawa.
