Update on Use of Cryptocurrency in Illicit Fentanyl Market

United States Senator Elizabeth Warren has requested an update from drug agencies regarding their recent discoveries and actions concerning the use of cryptocurrency in the illegal fentanyl market.

In a letter dated May 29, Senators Warren and William Cassidy expressed their need for information on the Biden Administration’s measures to combat drug traffickers who exploit cryptocurrency to expand their operations and launder their proceeds. The letter, directed to Rahul Gupta, the Office of National Drug Control Policy director, and Anne Melissa Milgram, the Drug Enforcement Administration’s administrator, reiterated their assertion that cryptocurrencies are playing an increasingly significant role in the fentanyl trade, a portion of which reaches the United States for consumption.

The senators are seeking responses by June 14 regarding the extent to which cryptocurrency facilitates drug trafficking, the upcoming initiatives to be enforced within the next year, and the metrics to gauge the efficacy of efforts in combating illicit cryptocurrency usage in the fentanyl trade.

Furthermore, they inquired about the challenges faced by these agencies in preventing the use of cryptocurrency in illegal drug transactions.

The senators referenced a May 2023 investigation that revealed around 80 Chinese companies involved in supplying fentanyl precursors received nearly $30 million in cryptocurrency payments. This sum was reportedly sufficient to acquire the necessary precursors for producing fentanyl pills valued at approximately $54 billion.

Senator Warren has faced criticism in the past for inaccuracies in data presented to support her anti-cryptocurrency stance. She previously mentioned a misinterpreted report from The Wall Street Journal in October 2023 that inaccurately portrayed the extent to which Hamas utilized cryptocurrency to fund terrorism activities linked to the Israel-Palestine conflict. Despite the subsequent correction by the WSJ, Warren did not publicly address the misinformation.

U.S. attorney and XRP supporter John Deaton has expressed interest in challenging Warren for the Massachusetts Senate seat, emphasizing the importance of discussing issues like income inequality and the opioid crisis.

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