Crypto Team SHUT DOWN?! 😱

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Ah, the United States Department of Justice, that grand theater of bureaucracy. It appears they are, shall we say, *reorganizing* the National Cryptocurrency Enforcement Team (NCET). One might even call it disbanding. Like actors leaving the stage after a poorly received play. 🎭

A certain Fortune journalist, bless their soul, claims to have glimpsed a four-page memo penned by the esteemed Deputy General Todd Blanche. In it, allegedly, Blanche laments that the DOJ is not, in fact, a digital assets regulator. Imagine that! The previous administration, in its boundless wisdom, apparently pursued a “reckless strategy of regulation by prosecution.” How very… theatrical. 🤔

Blanche, you see, is not just any bureaucrat. He’s practically a character from a Dostoevsky novel, having served as US President Donald Trump’s defense attorney in various high-profile cases, including that New York hush money affair and those pesky federal cases involving classified documents and the 2020 election. One wonders if he ever gets a moment’s peace. 🕊️

What is the NCET? (Or, Was?)

The NCET, a fleeting dream launched in October 2021 under President Joe Biden, aimed, as Deputy Attorney General Lisa Monaco put it, to go after platforms “that help criminals launder or hide their criminal proceeds.” A noble cause, no doubt. She envisioned dismantling the “financial ecosystem that enables these criminal actors to flourish.” One almost feels sorry for the criminals. Almost. 😈

The NCET has been, or rather, *was*, active since February 2022. Its website, a relic of a bygone era, remains online. The disbandment is reportedly effective immediately, a swift and decisive move to comply with Trump’s late January executive order reshaping US crypto policy. The winds of change, as they say, blow fiercely. 🌬️

Trump Makes Waves (or Perhaps Causes a Tsunami) in US Crypto Policy

Trump, our man of the people (and cryptocurrency), campaigned on a pro-crypto platform. A strategic Bitcoin reserve, speeches at crypto conferences, promises to make the US a global crypto leader—the whole shebang! He even appointed a pro-crypto Securities and Exchange Commission chairman. One might suspect he has a vested interest. 🧐

Ah, but here’s where the plot thickens. Critics, those tireless guardians of ethical purity, have raised concerns over potential conflicts of interest. Trump and his family, you see, are involved in the World Liberty Financial (WLFI) decentralized finance (DeFi) protocol, the Official Trump (TRUMP) memecoin (because why not?), and Trump Media is launching crypto exchange-traded funds (ETFs) in partnership with Crypto.com. A regular Renaissance man, that Trump. 🎨

These ventures, naturally, have not been without their share of controversy. The presidential memecoin was plagued by insider trading allegations, later dismissed as mere MEV bot activity. Concerns were also raised about the WLFI’s World Liberty Financial USD (USD1) stablecoin and its potential to complicate bipartisan efforts to pass stablecoin legislation in Congress. Oh, the tangled web we weave! 🕸️

This led to Five Democratic lawmakers in the US Senate, those paragons of virtue, calling on regulatory agencies to consider the potential conflicts of interest caused by the USD1 stablecoin in late March. Earlier in April, California Representative Maxine Waters suggested that Trump may be looking to replace the US dollar with his stablecoin. The audacity! The sheer, unadulterated audacity! 🤣

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2025-04-08 16:22