Focus on Investor Protection, Not Platforms
Prosecutors will still pursue criminal organizations and terrorist groups using cryptocurrency to fund illegal operations. However, they will no longer target platforms such as crypto exchanges, mixers, tumblers, or offline wallets simply because these were used in unlawful activity. Enforcement will now depend on whether the case aligns with the DOJ’s new priorities.
“The department will not pursue actions against platforms used by bad actors unless the platform itself was complicit or the case aligns with DOJ’s outlined priorities,” the memo said.
Limits on Charging Regulatory Violations
Blanche’s memo also advised against bringing charges based solely on regulatory violations—such as unlicensed money transmission or securities registration failures—unless there is evidence of willful misconduct. Prosecutors are encouraged to avoid legal battles over whether a particular digital asset qualifies as a security or a commodity when more straightforward charges, like wire fraud, are applicable.
That said, the DOJ may still argue that Bitcoin and Ether are commodities, and pursue securities fraud charges where crypto tokens represent equity in a firm.
