$95 Million Blockchain Contract Awarded to Rival Firm After Allegations of Favoritism
Chainalysis has accused U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) of unfairly steering a nearly $95 million blockchain contract to rival TRM Labs.
The complaint, filed in the U.S. Court of Federal Claims, alleges that ICE tailored the contract requirements to favor TRM, despite Chainalysis meeting several of the mission areas outlined in the Statement of Need.
According to the complaint, ICE issued a Request for Information (RFI) on May 28, asking vendors about their capabilities, including real-time scam wallet screening and automated notifications. However, when it came time to award the contract, ICE used criteria from the RFI rather than the Statement of Need, which Chainalysis claims was not disclosed to competing vendors.
The complaint also alleges that ICE's justification for the award cited a more specific set of capabilities than those outlined in the Statement of Need, and that several of TRM's qualifications were based on proprietary products or partnerships that did not appear in the Statement of Need at all.