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ARTICLE · 07 JUNE 2022

The Crypto Enthusiast And The Regulator: What OFAC Is, Could Be, And Should Be Doing To Regulate CryptoCurrencies

Sheppard
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On May 6, the US Department of the Treasury's Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) designated a cryptocurrency mixer, Blender.io, as a Specially Designated National (SDN).

United StatesTechnology
Reid Whitten
Reid Whitten
Gabriel Khoury
Gabriel Khoury
Fatema Merchant
Fatema Merchant
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On May 6, the US Department of the Treasury's Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) designated a cryptocurrency mixer, Blender.io, as a Specially Designated National (SDN). That sanction follows a series of enforcements and sanctions which we have previously discussed here and here.

The action is the latest in a fascinating back-and-forth between the crypto industry and its regulators, as both sides explore a new world of currency movement and what controls can and should be placed on it. To illustrate the parties' positions, we provide the following discussion between a crypto enthusiast blockchain lawyer (played by our associate, Gabriel Khoury) and a skeptical regulatory lawyer (played by our partner, Reid Whitten).

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