Senate Crypto Bill Hands Treasury “Patriot Act–Style” Surveillance

Описание: Crypto bill

Galaxy Digital

Market Structure Bill

Galaxy warns Senate crypto bill could hand Treasury unprecedented surveillance powers over DeFi, stablecoins, and digital asset transactions.

Journalist

Hassan Shittu

Journalist

Hassan Shittu

Part of the Team Since

Jun 2023

About Author

Hassan, a Cryptonews.com journalist with 6+ years of experience in Web3 journalism, brings deep knowledge across Crypto, Web3 Gaming, NFTs, and Play-to-Earn sectors. His work has appeared in...

Has Also Written

Zcash Foundation in the Clear: SEC Ends Years-Long Probe With No Enforcement Action

BonkFun Slashes Creator Fees to 0% to Revive ‘2024 Glory’ — Are Meme Coin Launchpad Wars Back?

Mantra Slashes Staff and Restructures Following ‘Brutal’ OM Token Collapse

Delphi Digital: Perp DEXs Poised to Replace Banks as "All-In-One" Financial Giants

Elizabeth Warren Urges Regulator to Freeze World Liberty Bank Bid Until Trump Cuts Crypto Ties

Author Profile

Share

Copied

Last updated:

January 14, 2026

A draft crypto market structure bill in the U.S. Senate is drawing renewed concern from the digital asset industry, with Galaxy Digital warning it could give the Treasury Department sweeping surveillance and enforcement authority reminiscent of the USA Patriot Act.

The warning comes as lawmakers move to bridge House and Senate regulatory proposals amid ongoing market volatility and policy uncertainty.

Senate Crypto Bill Gives Treasury Broad New Powers, Galaxy Says.

In a research note published Tuesday, Galaxy said the Senate Banking Committee’s draft goes well beyond the House-passed Digital Asset Market Clarity Act, particularly in its treatment of illicit finance.

At the center of the firm’s concern is a new crypto-specific “special measures” authority that would allow Treasury to label foreign jurisdictions, financial institutions, or even entire categories of digital asset transactions as primary money-laundering concerns.

Once designated, Treasury could restrict or condition crypto fund transfers connected to those entities, a power Galaxy compared directly to authorities created under the Patriot Act after the September 11 attacks.

Galaxy argued that, while framed as a national security tool, the authority could be applied broadly across offshore trading venues and transaction rails, materially expanding the government’s reach into crypto markets.

It said that, taken together, the bill’s provisions would amount to the largest expansion of financial surveillance powers since the early 2000s, a period that remains controversial for its impact on civil liberties.

The draft legislation also introduces a formal framework for temporary transaction holds.

Under this mechanism, Treasury or other covered agencies could request that stablecoin issuers and digital asset service providers freeze transactions for up to 30 days, with the option to extend, without first obtaining a court order.

Galaxy flagged this as a significant departure from existing processes, noting the absence of immediate judicial oversight.

Another section of the bill explicitly brings crypto front ends into sanctions and Anti-Money Laundering compliance.

The text defines “distributed ledger application layers,” including web-hosted interfaces used to access blockchains and decentralized finance protocols.

It also directs Treasury to issue guidance requiring these tools to screen wallets, block sanctioned...

https://cryptonews.com/news/senate-cr...

#crypto #bitcoin #ethereum #cryptocurrency #news #blockchain #litecoin #cryptonews #cryptonewstoday #cryptoworld #cryptonewstoday
***NOT FINANCIAL, LEGAL, OR TAX ADVICE! JUST OPINION! I AM NOT AN EXPERT! I DO NOT GUARANTEE A PARTICULAR OUTCOME I HAVE NO INSIDE KNOWLEDGE! YOU NEED TO DO YOUR OWN RESEARCH AND MAKE YOUR OWN DECISIONS! THIS IS JUST ENTERTAINMENT!

This information is what was found publicly on the internet. This information could’ve been doctored or misrepresented by the internet. All information is meant for public awareness and is public domain. This information is not intended to slander harm or defame any of the actors involved but to show what was said through their social media accounts. Please take this information and do your own research.

bitcoin, blockchain, crypto, cryptocurrency, altcoin, investment, ethereum, bitcoin crash, xrp, cardano, ripple