Hideo Nakamura The American IRS (Internal Revenue Service) is helping Ukraine trace people who are breaking the Russian sanctions. It’s doing this by giving Ukrainian law enforcement a special tracking program and teaching them how to use it properly.
US and Ukraine Team Up
The police division of the US government said that it is getting closer to catching people who are not following the rules and laws set by America. The special team will work together with a company called Chainalysis and members from Ukraine to figure out if any Russians have used secret money (cryptocurrencies) as an excuse for their wrongdoings during their invasion of Ukraine.
The IRS, or Internal Revenue Service (which is a part of the US government), is helping Ukraine use special software to investigate people who do things with cryptocurrencies. The IRS is also helping Ukrainian law enforcement officers learn how to trace cryptocurrency purchases and sales online. There are both online classes and in-person training sessions being offered.
The U.S. and Ukraine are trying to work together better, according to the U.S. revenue service’s statement. The Criminal Investigation Chief of the IRS, Mr. Jim Lee also said that cooperating can help with protecting the financial system both in America and around the world.
Governments around the world are saying that places like Russia and Iran may be using a special type of money called ‘crypto’ to break international laws. Recently, an article in Bloomberg also said that Binance, the biggest crypto exchange in the world is being looked into by the American Government because they might have done something against the rules.
Michael Gronager, the CEO of Chainalysis, says that although crypto currencies can be used by some people to avoid sanctions, it is too hard for it to happen on a large scale. They are working to see how much money rich Russians are using in Ukraine.
Cryptocurrency is playing a really important role in the war by donating money to help both sides. Recently, over $5 million has been sent that way to almost 100 Russia-supporting groups. A research shows in March that most digital assets from wallets with Russia involvement end up in centered exchanges.
The US and Ukraine have been working together on crypto issues. With the help of American police, the Ukrainian cops stopped a group that was using cryptocurrencies to steal money from ransomware and frauds. The law enforcement closed down 9 of these platforms in May.
Do you think that U.S. and Ukraine should team-up again to trace Russian crypto activities? Please let us know your thoughts in the comments section below!
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