The Financial Crimes Enforcement Network ("FinCEN"), the US Department of the Treasury bureau responsible for combating money laundering and terrorist financing, has been by far the most impactful federal regulator of Bitcoin and other virtual currency. FinCEN's March 2013 interpretive guidance on virtual currency remains the key statement of federal regulatory policy on the topic. FinCEN was the first federal department to assert regulatory jurisdiction over Bitcoin and other virtual currencies, and to date it has taken more action on the subject than all other federal regulatory agencies combined.

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Originally published in the FinTech Law Report, Volume 19, Issue 1, 2016

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