A Senate Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs Committee from the American Treasury Department met on January 17th to discuss the \"evolving threat\" of digital currencies, a Treasury official related.

The US Department of Treasury, along with many other financial regulators, is stepping up its measures for AML enforcement. Fearing cryptocurrency\'s potential for facilitating money laundering and other criminal activities, the Department will work with the IRS to improve so-called AML/CFT rules (\"anti-money laundering/combating the financing of terrorism\").

Sigal Mandelker, the Under Secretary for Terrorism and Financial Intelligence, testified before the Committee, saying that new rules needed to be implemented by financial institutions in order to ensure that they comply with new regulations. Such new regulations will include a rule for \"due diligence\" which will go into effect in May 2018 and will govern cryptocurrency exchanges.

The Treasury\'s FinCEN (Financial Crimes Enforcement Network) would have to work with registered exchanges to prevent criminal parties from using digital currencies to transfer funds. They have also joined with the IRS in planning recommended actions for exchanges so that they may comply more fully with existing regulations and initiated enforcement.

Mandelker also confirmed that America is cooperating with regulators in other countries with regard to general cryptocurrency policies.