Republican Senator Cynthia Lummis was frustrated by the correction of the Wall Street Journal, the source she used to request an investigation. The representative admitted that there is a misconception that cryptocurrencies are a tool for illicit finance, with which she had accused Binance and Tether. Lummis cited a report from Chainalysis, according to which these movements represent less than 1% of global illicit financial activity.
After calling for Binance and Tether to be investigated for alleged cryptocurrency donations to the terrorist group Hamas, Republican Senator Cynthia Lummis expressed frustration at the Wall Street Journal’s correction. This is the source used by the representatives to send a letter to the Secretary of Justice of the United States, Merrick Garland.
In the letter, they urged the taking of severe determinations against the alleged bad actions of the aforementioned platforms. Once the journalistic outlet corrected his assertions, Lummis expressed himself on social networks. He admitted to echoing the post and renewed his call for clear regulation for the cryptocurrency industry.
The “Inaccurate Report” for which the US Asked to Investigate Binance and Tether
The report in question detailed how cryptocurrencies had been used to finance three prominent organizations in the Middle East. Since at least August 2021, Hamas, Palestinian Islamic Jihad, and Hezbollah had received cryptocurrency donations. Cynthia Lummis herself allowed her feelings be read in a post in X, after WSJ partially corrected the publication that caused the senator from Wyoming’s misstep:
“An inaccurate report last week claimed that Hamas raised nearly $100 million through crypto assets. In reality, it was less than 500 thousand dollars. “This encapsulates the misconception that cryptocurrencies are a tool for illicit finance when they represent less than 1% of global illicit financial activity.”
Lummis highlighted the seriousness of inaccurate statements whose subsequent correction does not achieve the same scope as the accusations. He did it during a conversation in X: “Those types of reporting errors are very dangerous because once the stories come out, they become a narrative and the correction didn’t get the amount of traction it should have.”
In the space dedicated to analyzing what happened, the representative recognized that these types of accusations harm the substantive debate around cryptocurrencies. He also asked that the need to regulate the activity not be lost sight of.
“When people default, people who don’t like cryptocurrencies go back to saying that cryptocurrencies are bad. Let’s ban cryptocurrencies. This sets the debate back. Legitimate uses of cryptocurrencies require a well-understood regulatory framework. “Senator Gillibrand and I have presented a regulatory framework to Congress that could be enacted.”
Chainalysis is Summoned by the Senator to Separate the Links between Binance and Tether with Hamas
A recent report from the analysis firm Chainalysis explains that cryptocurrencies are very little used by terrorist groups. The main argument is the ease with which movements can be tracked. According to the report’s conclusions, digital assets represent a very small part of terrorism financing in the world.
This work was what Senator Cynthia Lummis cited to request that alleged bad actions by certain actors could involve the entire industry. Chainalysis explains that even though there are indeed terrorist organizations that use cryptocurrencies to collect, store and transfer funds, the percentage is minimal in the total volume of cryptocurrency transactions that are illicit.
The analysis concludes that, when it comes to financing, traditional methods are more attractive to terrorists. This includes fiat currencies, financial institutions and front companies.
By Audy Castaneda
