Senators challenge DOJ crypto unit shutdown

Six US senators have questioned Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche over the Justice Department’s decision to disband its cryptocurrency enforcement team despite a sharp rise in illicit crypto activity in 2025.

The senators cited data showing crypto-related crime surged to a record $158 billion last year, arguing the shutdown weakened enforcement at a time when oversight was most needed.

Blanche dismantled the DOJ’s national cryptocurrency enforcement team in April 2025, months after President Donald Trump’s inauguration, saying the department should not act as a “digital assets regulator”.

Lawmakers allege Blanche held significant personal crypto investments when the decision was made, raising concerns about a potential conflict of interest.

“The fact that you held substantial amounts of cryptocurrency at the time you made this decision calls into question your own motivations,”

The senators wrote in a letter dated Jan. 28.

They said Blanche declared crypto holdings worth between $158,000 and $470,000 shortly before Trump took office and only divested months later, after issuing a memo scaling back enforcement.

The senators warned that shutting the unit was a “grave mistake” that could enable sanctions evasion, scams and violent crime, noting criminals stole nearly $2.9 billion through crypto hacks during 2025.