[hermes19]

Couldn't they still demand ransom in BTC? I assume if BTC is largely banned in the US, it will still exist. Exchanges will still exist (in some countries) and it'll still be traded.

Couldn't attackers still say, "Go get some BTC and deposit it. Where do you get some? Not our problem."

Maybe there's something I'm missing.

[cjensen]

Good question! So this is like US companies paying bribes. The employee handbook for my first job said that bribes could be paid in other countries if they are usual and customary. Bribes over a certain sum required executive authorization.

The US has now made paying bribes in other countries into US felonies. So now US companies do not pay bribes if they are sane.

So sure, an attacker could say "Go get some BTC and deposit it. Where do you get some? Not our problem." But then the executive in charge would have to choose between (1) committing a felony with jail time attached for him or (2) possibly going out of business and finding a new job. For sensible people, that's not really a choice.

[hermes19]

If paying bribes is already a felony, can you help me understand how "outlaw non-traceable payment methods like Bitcoins" would help?

Seems like you sweep up a lot of innocent consumers who just want to use bitcoin, and if paying bribes is already illegal I'm not sure what additional incentive this adds.

I guess my point in this post and prior was: paying the bribe is the problem, not the medium they wish to use to transact.