Inside the FBI’s little-known annual crypto crime gathering
The FBI hosts an annual, invitation-only symposium called the Virtual Asset Technical Exchange to coordinate with private-sector crypto-security firms and international law enforcement. The event focuses on combating illicit activities such as money laundering, terrorist financing, and cyber-enabled fraud.
Why it matters
This highlights the increasing integration between federal law enforcement and private blockchain forensics firms to address the growing sophistication of crypto-related crimes.
The FBI’s Virtual Asset Technical Exchange, formerly known as the Virtual Currency Symposium, brings together law enforcement officials, overseas investigators and crypto-security professionals to exchange information on crypto crime, according to three previous attendees who spoke to CoinDesk.
Blockchain forensics firms, including Chainalysis and TRM Labs, are said to have attended this year’s event in September in San Antonio, Texas. Nikhil Raghuveera, co-founder and CEO of Predicate, a compliance infrastructure provider for blockchain-based financial products, gave a presentation on stablecoin compliance and GENIUS.
Representatives from the Security Alliance (SEAL), a nonprofit focused on protecting the crypto ecosystem from cyber threats, and the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN), the U.S. Treasury bureau responsible for combating money laundering and illicit finance, also attended, the people said.
The FBI and Chainalysis declined to comment. TRM confirmed attendance at the event. Predicate acknowledged that the company’s CEO presented at the conference.
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