The Blockchain Association, a cryptocurrency advocacy group, has filed additional Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) requests with the Federal Housing Finance Agency and the New York Department of Financial Services. This move follows their earlier requests to the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System, and the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency seeking information on the de-banking of crypto-friendly banks, particularly on the recent closure of Signature Bank and the failure of Silvergate Bank.
The organization aims to shed light on whether the closure of Signature Bank was due to insolvency or a decision to send an anti-crypto message. Whether the failure of Silvergate was caused by a politically-motivated decision by the Federal Home Loan Bank of San Francisco. The Blockchain Association also filed a brief in a United States District Court together with the DeFi Education Fund on the sanctioning of Tornado Cash.
The Blockchain Association, which represents around a hundred members in the crypto industry, including executives, investors, companies, organizations, and projects, spent $1.9 million lobbying the US government in 2022. With these FOIA requests, the association seeks clarity on recent regulatory action against digital asset-friendly banks.