Combating Money Laundering, Terrorist Financing, and Counterfeiting Act of 2017

The recent innovation known as bitcoin is a leap into a world of financial freedom and control for people on the internet who want to do business without the involvement of banks, but the US Government is keen to stop everybody enjoying it with a new Bill they are putting forward. And as always when it comes to government authorities, they are motivated by fear.

One of the most exciting new innovations to come out of the internet in recent years is bitcoin. Bitcoin is a form of crypto currency, a new way to use money on the internet. If you’re not totally clear on what a crypto currency actually is, the simplest way to look at it might be to think of it as money that is not made of paper, yet is also not controlled by a bank. We can all use credit or money that is transferred directly as electronic data, but before crypto currency, there was always a bank involved the transaction.

If you’re the type of person who thinks banks and governments have a little too much control over our money and our lives in general, then Bitcoin comes as good news along with other forms of crypto currency in the new form of freedom. These bank-free forms of exchanging monetary value return control to the people. It’s the electronic and internet version of using cash money to avoid going through the banking system. The obvious advantage is that you are free with bitcoin and you have control, there is no bank with its hand in your pocket, taking fees and there’s no way anyone can check up on your money, not even the government. It’s the Wild West of online money.

But this brings us to the down side. As we all know, any form of freedom will be abused by the worst people in this world and crypto currency is certain to be no exception. The US Federal Government has already realised this as well.

Terrorist funding, money laundering and money exchanges for drug smuggling are a major concern to the United States Federal Government. A recent Bill was placed before the United States Congress which was intended to stop banks and other financial institutions being used by terrorists, drug smugglers and other criminals. But it wasn’t long before some of those in politics realized they needed to add something extra to the Bill. This new addition was to deal with one more way bad people could move money around to pay for all the wrong things. It was aimed at stopping or limiting the use of bitcoin and other crypto currencies.

As soon as bitcoin came on the scene it was already under attack from government who feared the ways it could potentially be misused. Obviously, Murphy’s Law tells us what can go wrong with any new idea, almost certainly will go wrong. But the pity is, this new Bill, if implemented, could stifle the very freedom which makes bitcoin and crypto currency such an exciting new innovation for both users and investors.

Anyone looking to read the full bill can view it in the link below

https://www.congress.gov/bill/115th-congress/senate-bill/1241/text

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