Financing Terrorism: Is Crypto a Problem?

​How significant is crypto as a source of financing for terrorism, and what tools do authorities have to prevent its use for illicit purposes? There have been conflicting reports regarding the significance of this source of funding following the Hamas attacks against Israel. Similarly, while there were concerns about whether crypto could be used to avoid U.S. sanctions against Russia in response to its invasion of the Ukraine, a senior government official said it was “not a workaround". Many crypto proponents note that the transparency of the blockchain makes crypto less attractive to criminals than other means, but many in Congress remain concerned. Shlomit Wagman, Research Fellow at the Mossavar-Rahmani Center for Business and Government (MRCBG) and formerly Chair of the Israeli Money Laundering and Terrorism Financing Prohibition Authority; Dara Daniels, Head of Research and Analysis at the U.S. Treasury's Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) ; and Timothy Massad, Director of the MRCBG Digital Assets Policy Project and formerly chairman of the Commodity Futures Trading Commission, will discuss the international legal framework with respect to preventing the funding of terrorism, how that framework is being applied to virtual assets, and what can be done to strengthen that framework. ​

This event will be in-person only and limited to HUID holders.