WASHINGTON : U.S. officials have observed an uptick in the use of digital assets to facilitate illicit finance since Russia invaded Ukraine, but the transaction volume is too small to play a big role in helping Moscow evade sweeping sanctions, a senior Treasury official said on Friday.
Liang said the Treasury has been studying the issue for years, and that Group of Seven advanced economies and other countries have also raised concerns about use of digital assets for illicit finance, making effective enforcement imperative. Russia calls its actions in Ukraine a"special military operation" that is not designed to occupy territory but to destroy its neighbor's military capabilities.