U.S. Treasury Secretary cites "serious concerns" about cryptocurrencies, which are a "national security issue"

U.S. Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin held a press briefing to discuss cryptocurrency on Monday discussing recent interest in digital assets like Bitcoin and Libra. "Treasury has very serious concerns that "...Libra could be misused by money launderers and terrorist financiers," Mnuchin said. He called regulating the use of cryptocurrencies "a national security issue" in context of money laundering and other illicit use cases.

"FinCEN every entity that transacts in Bitcoin, Libra, or any other cryptocurrency to its highest standards," Mnuchin said. He reiterated comments from President Donald Trump that Bitcoin is "highly volatile" and "based on thin air."

"The U.S. welcomes responsible innovation," Mnuchin clarified. But the Treasury's overriding goal is to "protect the integrity of our financial system." Answering questions about Facebook's Libra team, Mnuchin said several times that "they got a lot of work to do" to demonstrate regulatory compliance and "make us comfortable."

"Our number one issue is: we don't want bad actors using cryptocurrencies," Mnuchin explained.

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