Blanche's Crypto Past Catches Up with Him at Senate Hearing

A Senate Judiciary Committee hearing on Wednesday turned into a grilling session for acting Attorney General Todd Blanche over his personal crypto dealings. Senator Dick Durbin (D-IL) questioned Blanche about his transfer of wealth to members of his family, which he did shortly after being confirmed as deputy attorney general.

Blanche allegedly owned at least $159,000 worth of crypto-related assets at the time and eventually divested them by transferring them to his child, children, and grandchild. Durbin pointed out that this was suspicious, especially considering Blanche's role in dismantling the DOJ's crypto enforcement team and shutting down ongoing criminal investigations of the crypto industry.

The ranking committee minority leader also brought up President Trump's involvement with cryptocurrency under 'suspicious circumstances'. He mentioned how Trump made a billion-dollar windfall from his family's cryptocurrency business in 2020 alone. Additionally, Durbin noted that the founder of Binance was sentenced to prison and ordered to pay a $50 million fine for a money laundering scheme.