The crypto industry should do more to police itself and report bad actors to authorities, according to a US Justice Department official who focuses on digital assets.
(Bloomberg) — The crypto industry should do more to police itself and report bad actors to authorities, according to a US Justice Department official who focuses on digital assets.
“You are the first line of defense,” Sanjeev Bhasker, who works on crypto in the department’s Money Laundering and Asset Recovery Section, said at an industry event in Washington on Wednesday. Bhasker didn’t mention any firm by name.
US scrutiny of the sector is increasing as aftershocks from crypto platform FTX’s sudden failure ripple through the industry. The firm’s collapse has placed strain on several companies, including brokerage Genesis and Gemini Trust Co., which is run by Tyler and Cameron Winklevoss.
Authorities in the US and the Bahamas are investigating the FTX turmoil, including a probe by the US Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York.
Bhasker didn’t mention any investigations in his comments. He urged digital-asset companies to monitor the marketplace and report any fraud or suspicious activity. “It falls upon you to represent crypto as a whole,” he said.
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