WASHINGTON D.C. – Today during an Executive Session of the Senate Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs Committee, Senator Andy Kim (D-NJ) and Senator Bill Hagerty (R-TN) agreed to push forward on an amendment to the Guiding and Establishing National Innovation for U.S. Stablecoins (GENIUS) Act that would deter bad actors’ use of stablecoins in illicit activities and further legislative action to establish a comprehensive anti-money laundering and illicit finance framework. 

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“I must express my deep concern with the evidence showing that cryptocurrencies, particularly stablecoin have been utilized by numerous bad actors including by drug cartels, foreign terrorist organizations to finance their illicit activities. There needs to be deterrence under law to ensure stablecoin issuers do not engage in any activities that would facilitate funds to any such cartels or foreign terrorist organizations…” stated Senator Kim. “I’m going to keep fighting to finalize my amendment as this bill moves out of committee to deter issuers from engaging in illicit finance acts. I am also going to keep fighting to establish a comprehensive AML/BSA finance framework beyond just issuers in the crypto ecosystem in future pieces of legislation, including a market structure bill.” 

“I agree with Senator Kim that illicit activities by drug cartels, foreign terrorist organizations, and state actors are a serious issue that cannot be ignored. As such, we must ensure that just as in traditional finance, there is deterrence under law that ensure stablecoin issuers don’t in any way inadvertently facilitate these sorts of activities. I want to make it clear I commit to working with Senator Kim to finalize an amendment as the bill moves forward to ensure issuers annually certify that they are not enabling such activity subject to civil and criminal penalties,” followed Senator Hagerty. 

Senator Hagerty continued: “I also commit to working with Senator Kim to establish a comprehensive anti-money laundering and illicit finance framework that would be applicable to the entities beyond the issuer in the digital assets ecosystem in future pieces of legislation that would include but not be limited to a forthcoming market structure bill.” 

Senator Kim serves as the Ranking Member of the Subcommittee on National Security and International Trade and Finance on the Senate Committee on Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs. He is a member of the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation; the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP); the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs; and the Special Committee on Aging. Before being elected to the U.S. Senate, Kim represented New Jersey’s Third Congressional District in the U.S. House of Representatives and was a career public servant working in national security and diplomacy at the White House, State Department, and Pentagon. 

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