A senior U.S. official has called on the crypto industry and the wide global financial sphere to take steps to prevent malicious actors from using the tech for illicit purposes.
Speaking at the American Bankers Association/American Bar Association Financial Crimes Enforcement Conference on Monday, U.S. Department of the Treasury Under Secretary for Terrorism and Financial Intelligence Sigal Mandelker outlined how her agency is examining the crypto space and calling for increased global oversight.
She highlighted the Treasury Department Office of Foreign Asset Control (OFAC)'s addition of bitcoin addresses to its sanctions list last week. The office listed two Iranian residents who converted bitcoin ransoms into Iranian rials as part of an effort to cut them off from the global financial system, she said.