US senator proposes tougher criminal liability for crypto companies


The representative of the Senate from the State of New York intends to enable the US Attorney’s Office to prosecute cryptocurrency companies for intentionally causing damage to their users.

Senator Kevin Thomas introduced an amendment establishing penalties for the offenses of cryptocurrency platform operators who misuse private keys and have hidden interests in crypto projects. The bill, drafted by Senator Thomas, calls for the punishment of developers and project owners who intend to mislead investors.

If the bill passes, the U.S. Attorney’s Office will have a legal framework to deal with crypto crimes and scams rampant among crypto companies, the author of the document says. Thomas demands to fine developers and site owners who sell “more than 10% of the project’s cryptocurrency within five years from the date of the last sale.”

Under the bill, private key fraud involves the disclosure or misuse of another person’s private keys without prior consent. One of the goals of the project is to make it a crime to publicly conceal a crypto company’s interest in certain cryptocurrencies.

The bill is currently under consideration by the relevant committee. If approved, the bill will be put to a vote in the US Congress.

The state of New York is very tough on the crypto industry and mining. In April, the New York Senate changed legislation giving the State Department of Financial Services (NYDFS) the power to collect crypto audit money from the crypto companies themselves.

Source: Bits

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