Representatives of Coinbase and Circle spoke at a United States Congressional hearing on February 15 and referenced concerns on Tether.
First, Caroline Hill, Circle’s Senior Director of Global Policy and Regulatory Strategy, directly cited Tether, mentioning terrorism financing activities. Notably, Carolie Hill formerly worked for the U.S. Treasury Department as a Director of Terrorist Financing and Financial Crimes (TFFC) before joining Circle.
In a video posted by Pledditor on X, Hill asks the Treasury Department to “use its authority” against companies with “U.S. touch points.”
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“I personally believe no company should be allowed to reference the U.S. Dollar without having those democratic values inside the company and inside their U.S. Dollar backed stablecoin. (…) I hope they [Treasury] are looking at this seriously given Tether’s reputation as well as the data we have seen that they are contributing to terrorist financing and other activities.”
– Caroline Hill
Coinbase accuses offshore entities of playing ‘jurisdictional wack-a-mole’
Moreover, Grant Rabenn, Coinbase’s Director of Financial Crimes Legal, celebrated the exchange’s compliance with OFAC due to “proactive investigations.” Rabenn then mentioned how Coinbase’s competitors are a safe haven for “criminals who seek offshore platforms.”
“Those offshore entities often play jurisdictional wack-a-mole, attempting to avoid though anti-money laundering rules and expecting their regulators won’t care.”
– Grant Rabenn
Interestingly, Coinbase is a shareholder of Circle and an active partner in USDC management. This stablecoin is the second-largest in the cryptocurrency market and a direct competitor to Tether’s USDT.
In this context, Rho Rider commented on X that this might be the first time these companies directly named Tether publicly.
Tether responds to Circle’s and Coinbase’s accusations
Following the Congressional hearing, CoinMarketCal reported a provocative comment from Paolo Ardoino, Tether’s CEO, on February 16.
“Misleading Congress is a shocking act of desperation, and those who do so should be ashamed of themselves. Spouting lies and running in Circles never gets you anywhere.”
– Paolo Ardoino
According to CoinMarketCal: “Ardoino continued that his company has done more than anyone else to combat illicit crypto activities and remains fully committed to continuing the fight.”
With these last events, the market awaits further rivalry between the leading stablecoins issuers and their partner exchanges. Now, possibly with a might ally on Circle’s and Coinbase’s side – the U.S. Treasury Department.
