Warren Expands Crypto Army in Senate

Senator Elizabeth Warren has garnered the backing of nine additional U.S. Senators for her proposed Digital Asset Anti-Money Laundering Act, as reported by a recent press release from her office.

The announcement on Senator Warren’s official website lists Democratic Senators including Gary Peters, Dick Durbin, Tina Smith, Jeanne Shaheen, Bob Casey, Richard Blumenthal, Michael Bennet, and Catherine Cortez Masto. Independent Senator Angus King has also lent his support. Notably, Peters heads the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, and Durbin leads the Senate Judiciary Committee.

Reacting to the growing support for her initiative, Warren remarked: “This growing support underscores the readiness of Congress to act. Our bipartisan proposal stands as the most stringent measure aimed at regulating the potential misuses of cryptocurrency, enhancing the regulatory toolkit.”

Several organizations, including Transparency International U.S., Global Financial Integrity, the National District Attorneys Association, the Major County Sheriffs of America, the National Consumer Law Center, and the National Consumers League, have endorsed the bill.

In July 2023, Senators Joe Manchin, Roger Marshall, and Lindsey Graham joined Warren in reintroducing the Digital Asset Anti-Money Laundering Act. The updated version seeks stricter regulations for noncustodial digital wallets, expands the scope of the Bank Secrecy Act, sets up an Anti-Money Laundering/Combating the Financing of Terrorism compliance review, and introduces additional legal actions against unauthorized digital currency activities.

Highlighting the financial implications, Warren emphasized a potential “$50 billion crypto tax gap.” She warns of a potential loss of approximately $1.5 billion in tax revenue for the U.S. Treasury and Internal Revenue Service in the fiscal year 2024 if there isn’t a timely tax policy revision.