Mnuchin says Treasury will ensure bitcoin doesn’t become ‘Swiss-numbered bank accounts’
KEY POINTS
- “We’re going to make sure that bitcoin doesn’t become the equivalent of Swiss-numbered bank accounts,” Mnuchin tells CNBC on Thursday.
Secretary of the Treasury Steven Mnuchin
SAUL LOEB | AFP | Getty Images
Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin said that the department will police bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies with “very, very strong” regulations so that they don’t become like anonymous Swiss bank accounts.
“We’re going to make sure that bitcoin doesn’t become the equivalent of Swiss-numbered bank accounts, which were obviously a risk to the financial system,” Mnuchin told CNBC’s “Squawk Box.”
“I want to be careful that anybody who’s using bitcoin — regardless of what the price is — is using it for proper purposes and not illicit purposes,” he added. “And there are billions of dollars of transactions going on in bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies for illicit purposes.”
Mnuchin was asked if bitcoin’s use in illegal transactions disqualifies it as a legitimate currency given that the U.S. dollar is often used by bad actors for illegal purposes.
“I don’t think that’s accurate at all, that cash is laundered all the time,” Mnuchin replied. “We combat bad actors in the U.S. dollar every day to protect the U.S. financial system.”