Anchorage Digital Bank, a leading cryptocurrency custody company backed by the Wall Street Giants, is being investigated by the Department of Homeland Security’s Department of Financial Crimes, according to sources familiar with the issue.
A survey conducted by the department’s El Dorado Task Force has contacted former Anchorage employees in recent weeks to gather information about the company’s internal practices and compliance protocols. Although the nature and scope of the investigation has not been officially disclosed, the task force is known for its efforts to combat cross-border money laundering and financial crime through preventive investigations.
Anchorage Digital, a federal chartered Crypto Bank, is backed by financial companies such as Goldman Sachs, Andreessen Horowitz, KKR and Wellington Management. The company provides services such as custody of digital assets and trading infrastructure for institutions and governments. Last week, BlackRock selected Anchorage as the custodian of products traded on crypto exchanges.
The company has faced scrutiny before. In April 2022, the Secretary of Currency (OCC) issued a consent order calling for Anchorage to enhance anti-money laundering controls and improve customer due diligence. At the time, the OCC said Anchorage was violating the bank’s secret laws and that gaps in its compliance system must be corrected. The company responded by committing to strengthening its procedures, and remains under today’s consent order.
The latest federal investigation is at a time when politically billed for the crypto industry, with Anchorage in a key position in Washington and strengthening ties with President Donald Trump, who has vowed to make the United States a “capital of the world.” CEO Nathan McCauley has played a leading role in the debate on “stopping off,” a financial institution’s practice that publicly defends Trump’s digital assets agenda and blocks Crypto’s services to customers.
In February, McAuley testified about the de-pasting practice before the Senate Banking Committee. He recently attended the White House Summit on Digital Assets and shared a photo with Bo Hines, executive director of the President’s Advisory Council on Digital Assets, saying, “Crypto is in good hands.”
The company is looking to enhance its reliability by hiring experienced regulatory leaders and financial leaders. The Anchorage board now includes former Goldman Sachs executive Connie Shoemaker and Julie Williams, who were legal counsels to the OCC during the 2008 financial crisis. The company recently saw a shaking of legal leadership with former SEC crypto investigator Tuongvy Le resigning as general counsel.
Founded in 2017 by McCauley and Diogo Mónica, Anchorage was last valued at $3 billion in the 2021 funding round. That same year, under then-OCC Chair Brian Brooks, Anchorage became the first and only crypto company to receive a National Bank Charter from federal regulators.
*This is not investment advice.
