April 25, 2018
Congress should kickstart the response to virtual currencies
Bitcoin and other virtual currencies are no longer just a technological novelty or a speculative bubble. They are affecting U.S. national security. To face their potential threat, Congress should organize an expert task force on virtual currencies and require the executive branch to formulate a national virtual currency strategy.
Recently, the national security implications of virtual currencies have come to the fore. Last month, President Trump prohibited use of the new Venezuelan virtual currency known as “el petro” aimed at evading U.S. sanctions. Then, a report revealed that Russia has advised Caracas on the currency, suggesting a concerted sanctions evasion scheme involving a primary U.S. competitor. During the same week, the city of Atlanta suffered a ransomware attack where the perpetrators took over the city’s computers and demanded a ransom in bitcoin.
These developments point to how concrete the threat of virtual currencies is. Yet, the U.S. government lacks a centralized source of knowledge on the threat or a whole-of-government strategy to counter it. Congress should lead on both.
Read the full article at The Hill
More from CNAS
-
The Real Impact of SCOTUS's Tariff Hearing with Kathleen Claussen
Podcast
Kathleen Claussen, Professor of Law at Georgetown University, joins Emily and Geoff to discuss the SCOTUS case on Trump's tariffs. They share their insights from the recent SC...
By Emily Kilcrease & Geoffrey Gertz
-
The Future of IEEPA Tariffs with Geoffrey Gertz
Podcast
On November 5, the Supreme Court of the United States heard oral argument on the use of the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA) by President Donald Trump to im...
By Geoffrey Gertz
-
Economic Security in North America
Commentary
Executive Summary In its request for comment, the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative (USTR) solicits comments on and recommendations for “specific actions [to promote] al...
By Emily Kilcrease & Geoffrey Gertz
-
How Sanctions Became a Way to Wage War and When They Actually Work, with Eddie Fishman
Podcast
In this episode of “Financial Crime Matters,“ Kieran Beer talks with Eddie Fishman, CNAS adjunct senior fellow and author of “Chokepoints: How the Global Economy Became a Weap...
By Edward Fishman
