‘If I was the government, I’d close it down’ — Chase CEO on crypto
JPMorgan Chase chair and CEO Jamie Dimon told several United States lawmakers that if he had the authority in government, he would try to shut down crypto.
In a Dec. 6 hearing of the Senate Banking Committee on oversight of Wall Street Firms, Dimon responded to questioning from Massachusetts Senator Elizabeth Warren, who claimed North Korea had funded much of its missile program using “proceeds of crypto crime” in addition to funding Hamas. The JPMorgan Chase CEO said he had “always been deeply opposed to crypto” and associated digital assets with “criminals” and “drug traffickers” in addition to tax avoidance.
“If I was the government, I’d close it down,” said Dimon.
The JPMorgan Chase CEO testified before the Senate committee alongside CEOs of Wells Fargo, Bank of America, Citigroup, BNY Mellon, Goldman Sachs, State Street and Morgan Stanley. Dimon has previously referred to cryptocurrencies as “decentralized Ponzi schemes” and Bitcoin (BTC) as a “fraud.”
Related: AI can be used in ‘every single process’ of JPMorgan’s operations, says CEO
Warren questioned the other CEOs on whether crypto firms should be subject to the same Anti-Money Laundering (AML) rules U.S. banks are obligated to uphold — to which all responded in the affimative. In a statement to Cointelegraph, a spokesperson for the crypto education-focused organization CEDAR Innovation Foundation said Warren’s claims revealed “a lack of understanding of blockchain technology.”
“It is misleading to claim that crypto facilitates illicit finance any more so than traditional fiat currency,” said CEDAR. “The statements by Senator Warren and the bank CEOs are a direct recognition of the promise of crypto, decentralized finance, and blockchain technology as a direct threat to the traditional financial system.”
The Massachusetts senator has been a vocal opponent of crypto in the U.S. government, often linking crypto transactions to terrorism and pushing for legislation aimed at cutting down on the illicit use of digital assets. In the wake of the Oct. 7 attack by Hamas on Israel, many U.S. lawmakers have supported Warren’s efforts to raise attention to the role of crypto in financing terrorism.
Magazine: Lawmakers’ fear and doubt drives proposed crypto regulations in US
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Conservative Party leader Kemi Badenoch has called on Sir Keir Starmer to sack Treasury minister Tulip Siddiq over allegations she lived in properties linked to allies of her aunt, Sheikh Hasina, the deposed prime minister of Bangladesh.
It comes after the current Bangladeshi leader, Muhammad Yunus, said London properties used by Ms Siddiq should be investigated.
He told the Sunday Times the properties should be handed back to his government if they were acquired through “plain robbery”.
Tory leader Ms Badenoch said: “It’s time for Keir Starmer to sack Tulip Siddiq.
“He appointed his personal friend as anti-corruption minister and she is accused herself of corruption.
“Now the government of Bangladesh is raising serious concerns about her links to the regime of Sheikh Hasina.”
Ms Siddiq insists she has “done nothing wrong”.
Her aunt was ousted from office in August following an uprising against her 20-year leadership and fled to India.
Ms Siddiq is also named with her aunt in Bangladesh court documents about meetings with the Russian government.
Tory leader Kemi Badenoch has called on Sir Keir to sack the minister
Read more from Sky News:
Ten Reform councillors quit in protest
Liz Truss sends cease and desist letter to Starmer
As economic secretary to the Treasury, Ms Siddiq is responsible for policy on both the City and tackling corruption.
She referred herself to the prime minister’s ethics watchdog on Monday following the reports about the properties.
On the same day, the prime minister said: “Tulip Siddiq has acted entirely properly by referring herself to the independent adviser, as she’s now done, and that’s why we brought into being the new code.
“It’s to allow ministers to ask the adviser to establish the facts, and yes, I’ve got confidence in her, and that’s the process that will now be happening.”
Kenya is preparing legislation to regulate cryptocurrencies with a draft proposal open for public feedback until Jan. 24.
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