The U.S. Department of Homeland Security’s group focused on combating money laundering and other finance-related crimes launched a query into Anchorage Digital Bank, according to reporting from Barron’s.
A subset of the department, the El Dorado Task Force reached out to former employees at the bank to ask about the “company’s practices and policies,” Barron’s reported on Monday citing people familiar. The substance of the probe is not clear, according to Barron’s. The task force has a mission to “disrupt and dismantle transnational money laundering organizations,” according to its website.
Anchorage and the Department of Homeland Security did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Barron’s also reported that TuongVy Le, general counsel at Anchorage, moved to an “advisory role” recently because she is contemplating offers that are outside of the firm.
Anchorage got in hot water with regulators a few years ago. In 2022, the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency released an order citing what it called Anchorage Digital’s lax compliance with KYC and anti-money laundering provisions. The order required Anchorage to cease and desist from those practices and instead institute a revamp and a number of new hires.
Washington ties
Anchorage CEO Nathan McCauley attended a White House-hosted crypto summit alongside other crypto executives in March where President Donald Trump vowed to end debanking through “Operation Choke Point 2.0.”
“The U.S. is planting its flag on the digital asset frontier. Thank you to @realDonaldTrump, @davidsacks47, and @BoHines for your leadership at yesterday’s Digital Asset Summit and for sending clear signals that this administration is moving crypto forward,” McCauley posted March 8 on X.
Debanking has become a hot topic among some lawmakers and the digital asset industry over the past few months amid increased criticism from crypto firms who say they face challenges when looking to establish and maintain bank accounts in the U.S. McCauley testified in front of the Senate Banking Committee in February on the topic. Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass, who has been critical of crypto, seemed to find common ground with the digital asset industry during that hearing.
“I don’t think for a second that you should be locked out of our banking system,” Warren told McCauley, after he said in written testimony that his firm had been debanked.
Since agencies such as the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation and the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency have shifted their stance on crypto, loosening up previous restrictions under the new Trump administration.
Anchorage has also seen traction in being picked up by large financial services firms over the past month.
Anchorage Digital and another firm, Copper.co, were picked by global financial services firm Cantor Fitzgerald to provide digital asset custody services last month. Last week, BlackRock added Anchorage Digital as a custodian to help with digital asset custody and support its spot crypto exchange-traded funds.
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