The report discusses the manner in which illicit actors are exploiting digital asset technologies; the challenges that digital assets pose to criminal investigations; initiatives that the department and law enforcement agencies have established as part of whole-of-government efforts to more effectively detect, investigate, prosecute, and otherwise disrupt these crimes; and recommended regulatory and legislative actions to further enhance law enforcement’s ability to address digital asset crimes.
The report identifies three proposals as priorities:
1) expanding to virtual asset service providers the laws preventing employees of financial institutions from tipping off suspects to ongoing investigations;
2) strengthening the law criminalizing the operation of unlicensed money transmitting businesses; and
3) extending the statute of limitations of certain statutes to account for the complexities of digital assets investigations.
The DoJ also announced the establishment of the nationwide Digital Asset Coordinator (DAC) Network, in furtherance of the department’s efforts to "combat the growing threat posed by the illicit use of digital assets to the American public."
Led by the NCET, in close coordination with the Criminal Division’s Computer Crime and Intellectual Property Section and the Money Laundering and Asset Recovery Section’s Digital Currency Initiative, the DAC Network is composed of designated federal prosecutors from U.S. Attorneys’ Offices nationwide and the department’s litigating components. Each DAC will act as their office’s subject-matter expert on digital assets, serving as a first-line source of information and guidance about legal and technical matters related to these technologies.
Commenting on the announcements, Attorney General Merrick B. Garland said:
“As digital assets play a growing role in our global financial system, we must work in tandem with departments and agencies across government to prevent and disrupt the exploitation of these technologies to facilitate crime and undermine our national security.
“The efforts announced today reflect the commitment of the Justice Department and our law enforcement and regulatory partners to advancing the responsible development of digital assets, protecting the public from criminal actors in this ecosystem, and meeting the unique challenges these technologies pose.”
The White House issued a fact sheet regarding the publication of the report.