Updated October 10, 2026. Correction: earlier versions of this article said Coinbase had won a formal blockchain analytics contract with the U.S. Treasury Department. We could not find a public record of that contract and have rewritten the article around what we could verify. Several market statistics in the earlier version have also been removed.
Coinbase has worked with U.S. government agencies for years, both as a vendor of investigation software and as a participant in policy debates. Here is what is on the public record, and what it means for crypto users.
Selling analytics software to agencies
In 2019 Coinbase acquired Neutrino, a blockchain analytics company, and turned its technology into Coinbase Analytics, later renamed Coinbase Tracer. The tool traces transactions across public blockchains to help investigators follow funds. Public contract records show:
- U.S. Secret Service (2020): a four-year license worth $183,750, running from May 2020 to May 2024.
- U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (2021): a three-year deal worth up to $1.37 million, signed in September 2021, plus a smaller $29,000 license contract. Reporting in 2022 said the contract included “historical geo tracking data”; Coinbase said the tool uses only publicly available data, not its customers’ personal information.
Coinbase was one of several analytics vendors, alongside specialist firms such as Chainalysis, that agencies have used.
Working with the Treasury on policy
Coinbase’s documented relationship with the Treasury Department is mainly as a commenter on rules. In October 2025, it submitted a 30-page letter responding to Treasury’s request for comment on new ways to detect illicit activity involving digital assets. Coinbase argued that current anti-money-laundering rules are outdated and urged Treasury to accept AI-driven transaction monitoring, blockchain analytics and privacy-preserving digital identity tools, and to create safe harbors and sandboxes for testing them.
Why it matters
- Blockchains are traceable. Most crypto transactions are public and permanent, and the tools to follow them are mature. Crypto is not anonymous by default.
- Exchanges sit on both sides. The same companies that serve customers also sell or support investigation tools and shape compliance rules, which raises fair questions about privacy.
- Rules are being rewritten. With the GENIUS Act for stablecoins in force and market structure legislation stalled, Treasury and other agencies are setting much of the practical policy through guidance and rulemaking.
A note on this correction
We aim to publish only claims we can source. When we find an error, we correct it in the open and keep the article’s URL so readers can see what changed.
Sources
- Crowdfund Insider: U.S. Secret Service awards four-year contract to Coinbase (July 2020)
- Fortune: Coinbase’s analytics contract with ICE (June 30, 2022)
- The Block: Coinbase’s comment letter to Treasury on detecting illicit activity (October 20, 2025)
- Coinbase: Comments on ensuring responsible development of digital assets
This article is for informational purposes only and is not financial, investment or legal advice. DynamicACG does not endorse any company or product mentioned.