Department of Justice Publishes "Enforcement Framework" for Cryptocurrencies

Floyd Mayweather Jr., DJ Khaled, T.I., and John McAfee have all experienced the wrath of the SEC for their various crypto exploits. But they were running afoul of general, long-standing securities laws.

Now, the U.S. wants to more proactively police the use of cryptocurrency, rather than just nab celebs plugging initial coin offerings. Yesterday, the U.S. Department of Justice published Cryptocurrency: An Enforcement Framework, an 83-page strategic roadmap for U.S. law enforcement.

Of note: The U.S. says cryptocurrencies are a potentially transformational technology, but they can be used to willingly circumvent the law. In particular, the U.S. is worried about cryptocurrencies being used for:

• The buying or selling of illicit goods/services
• Money laundering
• The commission of crimes
• Shielding legitimate economic activity from tax, reporting, and other legal requirements

Bottom line: Banks and other global financial services players are no strangers to the long arm of American law. The essential takeaway here is that if you’re using crypto for jurisdictional arbitrage, the long arm isn’t going away.