Non-custodial cryptocurrency platform ShapeShift has refuted US Senator Elizabeth Warren's "illicit funding" claims, suggesting she used the platform as a scapegoat to "push forward" her latest cryptocurrency bill, according to a recent statement.
ShapeShift stated in a tweet on February 19 that Warren made "mistakes" in his "analysis" of the platform, at a recent Senate banking committee hearing. entitled “Crypto Crash: Why Financial System Safeguards Are Needed for Digital Assets,” Feb. 14.
On Valentine's Day, @SenWarren tried to use ShapeShift as an example to power his latest cryptocurrency bill.
Unfortunately, there were errors in the Senator's analysis and we would like to take the opportunity to set the record straight.
— Shapeshift (@ShapeShift) February 18, 2023
in a follow up cheepShapeShift denied Warren's comments regarding his involvement in "illicit funding," stating that he "never handles user funds" and does not have the ability to "facilitate this."
This comes after Warren suggested at the Senate hearing that ShapeShift had ulterior motives for restructuring as a DeFi platform in July 2021.
Warren suggested that the restructuring was to encourage people to "wash" money on the platform.
Shapeshift also clarified that it is "not an exchange," explaining that it is an open source crypto board that "connects users" to different protocols and platforms.
He added that he cares about the "same things" as Warren, citing "user safety" and "access to innovation" as a mutual focus.
ShapeShift encouraged Warren and others to "constructively engage" on the topic of financial freedom and innovation with their community, by sharing a link to their discussion forum.
This comes just one day after Erik Vorhees, CEO of ShapeShift, took to his personal Twitter on February 18. stating that he expects Warren to "submit a proposal" to the Shapeshift DAO governance process, in response to his criticism of the platform.
Related: US Senator Elizabeth Warren Says Crypto Will Ruin The Economy: Community Responds
Warren has been a vocal crypto skeptic of late, having made comments in an interview on Jan. 25, suggesting that the United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) should "double down" on its crypto enforcement efforts, since the the crypto industry is scared for what comes next.
He claimed that the previous SEC administration "essentially gave the green light" to open a cryptocurrency market “full of junk tokens, unregistered securities, rug pulling, Ponzi schemes, bomb and dump sites, money laundering and sanctions evasion.”
Cointelegraph reached out to ShapeShift for comment but did not receive a response by press time.
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