US Democrat lawmakers demand access to SARs on Trump-backed crypto projects

US Democrat lawmakers have sent a letter to the US Treasury demanding access to suspicious activity reports (SARs) on several Trump-backed crypto projects

US House Democrats are demanding access to suspicious activity reports (SARs) on several Trump-backed crypto projects as part of the latest probe into the president’s digital ventures.

In a May 14 letter, representatives Gerald Connolly, Joseph Morelle, and Jamie Raskin of the House Appropriations, Financial Services and Industry, and Judiciary panels, asked Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent for all SARS filed since 2023. They are also interested in any SARs mentioning WinRed, America PAC, Elon Musk, political action committee, PAC, Trump, World Liberty Financial, WLF, TRUMP, MELANIA and Justin Sun, no later than May 30.

The sweeping probe is part of a wider effort by the Democrats to scrutinize the president’s finances. It follows a report by the Center for Responsive Politics in March which found that Trump raised a record $766 million for his re-election campaign in 2020.

Financial institutions in the US must file SARs with the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network, a bureau within the Department of the Treasury, when they detect suspicious activity, including potential money laundering or fraud.

Democrats pushing for access to Trump's crypto SARS.

The Democratic lawmakers say their probe is to “determine whether legislation is necessary to prevent violations of campaign finance, consumer protection, bribery, securities fraud, and other anti-corruption laws” and to guard against “financial misconduct connected to prospective or current federal officials.”

They add that they are interested in any pay-to-play schemes, foreign lobbying violations, campaign finance violations, fraud, and money laundering.

However, Democrats argue WLF could be misused as a “vehicle for foreign influence peddling” because it sold part of its token to foreign investors, who are “generally subject to less stringent regulation than U.S. investors.”

They also highlight the fact that Sun’s investment in WLF and the subsequent pause of the SEC’s lawsuit which alleged the crypto entrepreneur broke securities laws is a topic of interest.

The lawmakers add that they are interested in any pay-to-play schemes, foreign lobbying violations, campaign finance violations, fraud, and money laundering.