Categories: Cryptocurrencies

US Congress hears of crypto donations threat in elections

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Senator Sheldon Whitehouse addressed the hearing titled “Protecting Our Elections: Examining Shell Companies and Virtual Currencies as Avenues for Foreign Interference”, during which he commented: “Because some cryptocurrencies have anonymous features, they’re regarded as being particularly attractive to anyone trying to circumvent campaign finance laws. They can also facilitate peer-to-peer transactions, eliminating banks, and allowing a foreign adversary to conceal its location outside the United States.”

The witnesses that attended the hearing were Scott Dueweke of DarkTower; Sheila Krumholz of the Center for Responsive Politics, and David Murray of the Financial Integrity Network.

Dueweke spoke in favour of international cooperation to identify criminal uses. And he then told the subcommittee that it “would do well to set as a goal for itself to maintain and continuously establish the United States as the world’s leading advocate of Internet payment systems, virtual currencies, and their use.”

As of last week, all US House of Representatives must disclose their crypto holdings of more than $1,000 (£757.16).

Olivier Acuña

Olivier has been writing for over 30 years. He has been based in six countries working for major news outlets including the Guardian, UPI & AP. He has covered massive earthquakes, presidential elections, immigration, and taken photos standing in the middle of shootouts between drug cartels, gone undercover to investigate organised crime, interviewed presidents, former presidents, heads of international organisations.