Circle refutes terror financing accusations: We do not provide services to Justin Sun and his companies

Stablecoin issuer Circle refuted claims of facilitating illicit financing in a letter to U.S. Senators Sherrod Brown and Elizabeth Warren. It also stated that Circle does not provide services to Justin Sun, the Tron Foundation, or Huobi HTX.

Circle Makes Combating Illegal Financial Activities a Guiding Principle

Circle emphasizes that combating illegal financial activities, including funding terrorism in any form, has always been a guiding principle of its business. Additionally, Circle is an active partner with regulatory agencies and law enforcement authorities in the United States, Israel, and other jurisdictions to help ensure that its stablecoin USDC does not fund any form of illegal activities. Circle was also recently recognized by the U.S. Secret Service for its longstanding support in identifying fraud and Ponzi schemes and assisting in fund recovery.

Rebuttal to Campaign for Accountability's False Claims

Campaign for Accountability (CfA) is a nonprofit organization dedicated to overseeing the behavior of governments, businesses, and other power institutions to ensure accountability to the public. The organization recently wrote to Senators Brown and Warren in early November, suggesting they shift their focus to cryptocurrency entrepreneur Justin Sun, his blockchain TRON, and U.S. stablecoin issuer Circle for their potential roles in financing terrorist organizations.

Circle accuses CfA of citing a report from blockchain company Elliptic and directly quoting data from social media platform X without any substantiation or verification, claiming that Circle provided significant funding to Hamas or Hezbollah.

According to public blockchain records, only $160 in USDC was transferred in the $93 million digital assets wallet identified by the Israeli government, none of which came from Circle.

The Wall Street Journal reports that data firm Elliptic clarified: Hamas crypto donations vastly overstated

Circle Does Not Provide Services to Justin Sun and His Companies

Previously reported by Reuters, TRON, founded by Justin Sun, has been widely used as a cryptocurrency transmission platform by designated terrorist organizations in Israel, the United States, and other countries, faster and cheaper than its larger competitor Bitcoin.

TRON being used by terrorist organizations? Justin Sun: Decentralization is the top priority

In a letter, Circle specifically states that Justin Sun and any entities owned or controlled by him, including the TRON Foundation or HTX, do not have accounts with Circle. Even though the U.S. government has not blacklisted Justin Sun or his entities as Specially Designated Nationals (SDN), Circle terminated all accounts held by Justin Sun and his affiliated companies in February 2023.

Note: SDN (Specially Designated Nationals) is a list of individuals and entities designated by the U.S. as terrorists, warlords, oppressive officials, individuals harming U.S. and its allies' interests, as well as international criminals like drug traffickers, subject to sanctions.

Call for Legislators to Establish Comprehensive Framework for Regulating Stablecoins

Finally, Circle also calls on legislators to establish a comprehensive framework for regulating stablecoins to ensure that every issuer meets the highest standards for reserves, redemption, disclosure, liquidity, and operational risk management.

Circle expresses support for Senator Warren and Marshall's amendment to the National Defense Authorization Act to strengthen anti-money laundering regulations in the digital asset industry, as well as Chairman Brown's recent call for regulatory agencies to establish stronger disclosure requirements in the digital asset market. Circle looks forward to collaborating with lawmakers to enhance regulation in the digital asset space and more broadly combat money laundering and terrorist financing.

The U.S. Treasury Department calls for expanded enforcement tools, sanctions authority, targeting "U.S. stablecoin issuers"