Casten Statement on the Financial Innovation and Technology for the 21st Century Act
Washington, D.C. — U.S. Congressman Sean Casten (IL-06) has released the following statement after voting against the Financial Innovation and Technology for the 21st Century Act:
“Half of North Korea’s nuclear program may be funded through crypto-theft, according to U.S. national security experts. Russia and Venezuela are using cryptocurrency to evade U.S. sanctions. According to the Treasury Department, Hamas, the Palestinian Islamic Jihad (PIJ), ISIS, Al-Qaeda, and their enablers, like Iran, use cryptocurrency to finance terrorist attacks globally. And even the cryptocurrency industry has acknowledged that crypto-based sales of child sexual abuse material are a growing problem.
“The facts are clear. Foreign adversaries, terrorist groups, drug and human traffickers, child sexual abusers, ransomware attackers, and more prefer to use cryptocurrency because of its usefulness in exploiting gaps in the United States' anti-money laundering and countering the financing of terrorism, regulatory, supervisory, and enforcement regimes.
“The Financial Innovation and Technology for the 21st Century Act intentionally fails to address these issues. I introduced multiple amendments to rectify this, but House Republicans refused to bring them to the floor for a vote. Therefore, I voted no on passage of this legislation that would undermine the United States’ capital markets.”
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