October 20, 2023

Stricter Verification Laws in the U.S. Won’t Stop International Terrorists from Using Crypto

Recent reporting about Palestinian terrorist groups accessing crypto assets points to an ongoing challenge: Terrorist organizations continue to exploit weak links across the financial system to raise, hide, and disperse funds. Many gaps exist, both with traditional financial actors and some crypto platforms that don’t effectively enforce the clear legal requirements that should keep members of terrorist networks away from their services.

The realm of terrorist financing is always a cat-and-mouse game.

It’s important to note that crypto companies in the U.S. are regulated—and have been since 2013. Exchanges and other financial intermediaries are money service businesses under Bank Secrecy Act regulations, and they’re already required to register with FinCEN and report any suspicious—potentially criminal—activity. U.S. exchanges do AML/KYC checks and screen all potential customers for sanctions. It makes the U.S. safer. In this case, other countries have something to learn from the U.S.

Read the full story and more from Fortune.

  • Commentary
    • Foreign Policy
    • November 21, 2023
    Russia Is the Loser in the Israel-Hamas War

    Whereas Russia was central to the discussions around the Syrian civil war a decade ago, the future trajectory of the Middle East is likely to emerge from the Gaza crisis witho...

    By Peter Schroeder

  • Podcast
    • November 8, 2023
    Blinken swoops into Iraq to try and stifle a broader Mideast conflict

    In an unannounced trip, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken went to Iraq to meet with Iraq's Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani. His aim was to put a stop to drone and ro...

    By Jonathan Lord

  • Commentary
    • The Times of Israel
    • November 6, 2023
    The US House GOP Israel Bill Is Not Serious

    By tying support for Israel’s defense to a completely unrelated, and ultimately self-defeating budget cut, the House majority demonstrates it is unserious about supporting Ame...

    By Jonathan Lord

  • Video
    • November 2, 2023
    Jonathan Lord Joins CNN News Central to Discuss Israel Ground Offensive

    As Israel's ground offensive continues, CNAS Senior Fellow and Director of the Middle East Security Program Jonathan Lord joined CNN to discuss Israel's tactics, goals, and th...

    By Jonathan Lord

View All Reports View All Articles & Multimedia