A deal is struck between a US-based Cryptocurrency exchange named Coinbase, and the enforcement agency. This deal is reportedly worth as much as $1.36 million. The contract is regarding the technical development for the Department of Homeland Security.
Under this agreement, Coinbase will be responsible for applications development for the ICE.
The initial payment of $455,000 will be offered from ICE to the platform. However, Coinbase could receive up to approximately $1.36 million in total if the contract is renewed for Three Years.
This is the second time that ICE and Coinbase are partnering up, with the US Company has secured a $30,000 contract to offer computer-related forensic services to the department in the month of August.
The crypto community has been explicit about this news and it has received a lot of backlashes, with Human Rights Foundation which has stated that the financial compensation is relatively low given the risk that Coinbase is carrying about their reputation as a result of the partnership:
Moreover, once this news was out, the platform again was targeted with the objections related to its acquisition of the blockchain-related startup, Neutrino.
It was reported in 2019, that Neutrino is run by the same group of people who had earlier been members of the Hacking Team. It was alleged that Neutrino was a company that helped autocrats to spy and snoop on journalists.
CEO at Neutrino previously served as the Chief of Operations of the aforementioned Hacking Team, while its CTO, was associated with the organization for over 8 years. This Italian company, as reported by Washington Post, is quite notorious. In the five years between 2013 to 2018, their name has come up in several cases where journalists have been murdered.
Earlier in 2019, CEO of the platform Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong tried to calm things down and announced that the Neutrino staff members who were previously involved with the Hacking Team will pass or change their new job profiles.
