Chris Prentice and Sarah N. Lynch

WASHINGTON, (Reuters) – The U.S. Justice Department appointed a veteran computer crime prosecutor as the head of its national cryptocurrency enforcement unit. On Thursday, it announced that the FBI will launch a unit to conduct blockchain analysis and seize virtual assets.

After the Justice Department’s largest ever financial seizure, the FBI created the “virtual Asset exploitation” department. It charged a couple from New York with laundering bitcoins, now worth more than $4.5 billion. These were stolen during the hack of Bitfinex in 2016.

In the aftermath of several high-profile attacks last year against the U.S. largest fuel pipe network and world’s biggest beef supplier, the U.S. regulators have increased their oversight of crypto. Ransomware organizations often request bitcoin fees to pay their dues.

In a speech at the Munich Cyber Security Conference in Germany, Deputy Attorney General Lisa Monaco announced that Eun Young Choi, a prosecutor who led the case against a Russian hacker who helped steal information about more than 80 million JPMorgan (NYSE:) & Chase Co customers, will lead the department’s cryptocurrency enforcement team.