US Government Rules Out BTC As Drug Funding Mechanism

US Government rules out bitcoin as a funding mechanism for the ongoing drug smuggling trend for the fentanyl drug that is ongoing in the country as we read in the coming altcoin news reports.

In an advisory that was issued on August 21, the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) outlined the use of the convertible virtual currency in facilitating the black market. Also, according to the organization, the US is ‘’in the midst of an unparalleled epidemic of addiction and death from fentanyl and opioid used in pain prevention but also in anaesthesia. it also claims that the payments occur using Bitcoin $10069.6 which is about 0.12%, Bitcoin Cash $10001.8 which is about 1.65% and Ethereum $189.101 which is 0.85%.

Also, named were purchases using ‘’ money services business, bank transfers or online payment processors’’ which were used in the country but also abroad. The advisory further referenced other ‘’ more general money laundering mechanism’’ without further explain them or providing an example.

The vague language of the advisory had no hint as well of the volume of funds involved for either cryptocurrency or other methods used for financing. The mainstream media titles seized on the warning as proof that the Trump administration with the help of the FinCEn was looking to crack down on cryptocurrencies once again.

As it was previously reported, Trump himself had delivered some harsh comments on Bitcoin in July saying all cryptocurrencies are based on thin air as we read in the latest cryptocurrency news however his comments only had a temporary impact on the markets. FinCen in the meantime noted the crypto’s use in the darknet markets to procure fentanyl and especially via AlphaBay:

 “The Darknet is commonly used for a number of illicit activities, including fentanyl trafficking.’’

In July 2018, the US Government and Department of Justice seized AlphaBay’s servers and assets since at that time the processor was the largest criminal darknet market on the internet. AlphaBay required its users to transact in CVC including Ethereum, Monero, and Bitcoin to obfuscate transactions and related parties. Beyond fentanyl, the role of crypto worldwide in illicit activities is still an important topic of constant debate.

Despite the warnings from governments, the independent studies find that cash and other fiat currencies remain the criminal’s medium of choice of transactions. Bitcoin’s traceability makes it suboptimal to use in illicit activities because it is an anonymous payment method even with the US authorities saying it would in fact be helpful if its use continued.