On Wednesday, US Senator Elizabeth Warren brought up the use of cryptocurrencies in the purchase and sale of fentanyl and advocated for her bill to prevent money laundering at a congressional hearing.
The Digital Asset Anti-Money Laundering Act was proposed by the Massachusetts Democrat who has been a vocal opponent of cryptocurrencies for some time now.
Fentanyl sales are being financed in part by cryptocurrency. And we can put a stop to it if we so choose. Warren said as much at a hearing before the Senate Banking Committee.
Over 150 individuals in the United States die every day from overdoses using synthetic opioids like fentanyl, as reported by the Centres for Disease Control and Prevention in the United States.
The US Drug Enforcement Administration estimates that by 2020, China and Mexico will be the leading supply nations for fentanyl and fentanyl analogues.
Rosenberg testified in favour of the motion, thus the answer is yes. Some “precursor manufacturers” and “illicit drug organisations” have employed such a strategy, Rosenberg added.
To back up her claims, Warren referenced data from Elliptic, a research company, which showed that 90 Chinese vendors supplied “enough precursor drugs in exchange for crypto to produce $54 billion worth of fentanyl pills.”
Late last year, Warren initially proposed her Digital Asset Anti-Money Laundering Act, which aims to bring the cryptocurrency sector into line with current anti-money laundering and counter-terrorist funding regulations.
Warren has been a vocal opponent of cryptocurrencies, saying they are part of an economy “that is built to favour scammers.”
At a hearing earlier this month, Warren raised similar worries about North Korean bad actors utilizing cryptocurrency to circumvent sanctions.
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