On July 18, 2025, President Donald Trump signed into law the Guiding and Establishing National Innovation for U.S. Stablecoins Act of 2025 (the GENIUS Act or the Act), following its bipartisan passage by the Senate on June 17 (68–30) and the House on July 17 (308–122). 

In a significant decision announced last week, the Department of Justice (DOJ) declined to prosecute a private equity (PE) firm after the firm voluntarily disclosed sanctions and export control violations committed by a portfolio company the firm acquired. This result, and the government’s joint enforcement actions against the portfolio company and its former CEO, offer several important takeaways:

• It is critical for PE firms to conduct robust, non-siloed due diligence for trade and other compliance both before and after acquisition.

• Sanctions and export controls enforcement remains a key government focus, as evidenced by the extensive behind-the-scenes coordination between Justice, Treasury, Commerce, and Homeland Security.

• It is not uncommon for private equity firms to acquire a company and then discover hidden problems. Firms that promptly investigate, self-report, cooperate, and remediate can avoid criminal prosecution, even for serious violations.

• The government continues to hold individuals personally responsible for violations of sanctions and export controls regulations.

On February 6, 2025, President Trump issued Executive Order (EO) 14203, “Imposing Sanctions on the International Criminal Court,” blocking the property of the International Criminal Court’s (ICC) Chief Prosecutor and providing authority to designate any foreign persons that the Secretary of State (in consultation with the Secretary of the Treasury and the Attorney General) determines to have directly engaged in certain specified acts.