Circle refutes accusations and denies facilitating terrorist financing

USDC stablecoin issuer Circle has refuted recent allegations and denied that it is assisting in facilitating the financing of terrorist organizations. The accusations were made by a Washington NGO.

In a letter addressed to Senate Banking Committee Chairman Sherrod Brown and Senator Elizabeth Warren, Circle Chief Strategy Officer Dante Disparte defended the company and challenged the allegations.

“Circle recently became aware of a November 9, 2023 letter sent to you by the so-called Campaign for Accountability (“CfA”) regarding our company. The letter is full of errors, omissions and misleading information,” he wrote.

Disparte denied financing Hamas and stated that the company does not “count on Justin Sun.” “Let us be perfectly clear: Circle does not directly or indirectly facilitate or fund Hamas (or any other illicit actors). Neither does Circle count on Justin Sun. Additionally, Circle is subject to various regulatory regimes – including the Bank Secrecy Act (BSA) and applicable laws focused on anti-money laundering and combating terrorist financing – and has vigorously advocated for a comprehensive federal prudential regulatory regime in the United States.”

In the document, the executive highlighted Circle’s actions in combating illicit financial activities, highlighting the partnership with regulators and law enforcement authorities in the United States, Israel and other jurisdictions “to help ensure that our stablecoin, USDC, does not finance activities illicit acts of any kind.”

Regarding Sun, the company stated that it does not “bank” Justin Sun. “Neither Mr. Sun nor any entity owned or controlled by Mr. Sun, including the TRON Foundation or Huobi Global, currently have accounts with Circle. To date, the US government has not specifically designated Mr. Sun or his entities as Specially Designated Nationals. However, Circle closed all accounts held by Mr. Sun and his affiliated companies in February 2023.”

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