In the United States and five cryptocurrency exchanges, requesting information on what they are doing to combat cryptocurrency fraud and scams.
On Tuesday, the House Committee on Oversight and Reform sent letters to four government agencies in the United States and five cryptocurrency exchanges in an effort to combat crypto-related fraud and scams.
The four agencies are the Department of the Treasury, the Federal Trade Commission, the Commodity Futures Trading Commission, and the Securities and Exchange Commission. The five cryptocurrency trading platforms are Binance US, Kraken, Coinbase, FTX US, and Kucoin.
According to Rep. Raja Krishnamoorthi (D-IL), who signed the letters, the letters request information regarding the efforts they are making to combat cryptocurrency-related fraud and scams, as well as further actions that are needed to safeguard Americans.
Krishnamoorthi, who chairs the Subcommittee on Economic and Consumer Policy, stated that scammers have cashed in as claims of surging prices and sudden profits have enticed both professional and amateur investors to cryptocurrencies.
The FTC announced in June that since the beginning of 2021, more than 46,000 customers had reported losing more than $1 billion in cryptocurrency scams. According to the regulator, this amounts to around one out of every four dollars reported lost, which is more than any other payment method.
Krishnamoorthi underlined that “cryptocurrency is a preferred transaction method for fraudsters since there is often no central authority to flag questionable transactions, the irreversibility of transactions, and many investors and consumers have limited knowledge of the underlying technology.”
The lawmaker added that “for all these reasons, I am concerned about the rise of cryptocurrency-related fraud and consumer abuse.”
“Regardless of government prohibitions, cryptocurrency exchanges must undertake efforts to protect users who utilize their platforms to execute transactions. Cryptocurrency exchanges can—and should—create safer environments for customers by enacting audit procedures, enforcing specific disclosures, delisting, and implementing other safety features,” the congressman detailed.
The letters request that federal agencies and cryptocurrency exchanges provide records ranging from January 2009 to the present by September 12.
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