Tornado Cash Case Closed: Ethereum Mixer Free From Legal Challenges

The US Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit has officially dismissed the legal dispute between Coin Center and the US Treasury Department concerning the sanctions imposed on the crypto mixer Tornado Cash. 

This decision comes after the Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) removed Tornado Cash from its sanctions list earlier this year. The government claimed that this made the matter moot. 

Tornado Cash Sanctions Are Rescinded

Peter Van Valkenburgh, executive director of Coin Center, expressed relief over the court’s decision, noting on social media platform X (formerly Twitter) that it marks the conclusion of their legal battle regarding the statutory authority underpinning the Tornado Cash sanctions. 

Van Valkenburgh further emphasized that the government showed no interest in proceeding with a defense against what he described as an overly broad interpretation of sanctions laws.

Tornado Cash was initially sanctioned by the Office of Foreign Assets Controlin August 2022 for its alleged role in facilitating money laundering, which prohibited US individuals and companies from engaging with the platform. 

This action prompted a series of lawsuits from various crypto advocacy groups, including Coin Center, challenging the legal grounds for the sanctions. 

The appellate court had previously expressed skepticism regarding OFAC’s authority in this matter, which was echoed by the Treasury’s latest decision to withdraw its sanctions.

While Coin Center acknowledges that the appeal will only be considered fully moot once a separate Texas court ruling is finalized, both parties agreed to conclude this phase of litigation.

Upcoming Trial For Roman Storm

In a related development, Tornado Cash co-founder Roman Storm is facing a criminal trial scheduled to begin in less than two weeks. In a recent interview with Crypto In America, Storm discussed his ongoing deliberation about whether he will testify in his own defense. 

He indicated that his legal team intends to counter allegations suggesting he profited from illicit activities linked to the crypto-mixing service. However, he refrained from making a definitive statement about taking the stand, saying, “This is the decision that we will make. I don’t have a 100% answer right now. I may or may not.”

Storm was indicted in 2023 on multiple charges, including conspiracy to commit money laundering and operating an unlicensed money transmitter, following the Treasury’s sanctions against Tornado Cash. 

The government alleged that the platform was employed by North Korea’s notorious Lazarus Group to launder substantial amounts of stolen cryptocurrency.

As of this writing, the crypto mixer’s native token, TORN, is trading at $9.30. This represents an impressive 308% surge year-to-date, a performance similar to that of XRP during the same period, which has seen a 443% price increase. These two assets are among the top 100 performers in the market.

Featured image from DALL-E, chart from TradingView.com