๐จ๐ฐ U.S. Treasury Drops Tornado Cash Civil Case! โ What It Means for Crypto Privacy? ๐ก๏ธ๐ป
๐๏ธ Treasury Ends Legal Battle Over Ethereum Mixer Tornado Cash
1. Case Dropped
The U.S. Treasury and Coin Center jointly requested the Eleventh Circuit Court to dismiss their appeal over the sanctions against Tornado Cash, a decentralized Ethereum mixing service. The court approved on July 7, 2025, calling the matter moot.
2. Why It Was Moot ?๐งพ
In March 2025, the Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) removed Tornado Cash from its SDN list (Specially Designated Nationals โ a U.S. sanctions list that freezes assets and prohibits transactions).
This followed a court ruling that smart contracts arenโt โpropertyโ under U.S. sanctions law.
3. Advocates Declare Victory โ
Coin Center Executive Director Peter Van Valkenburgh emphasized the government dropped the appeal without defending its broad legal theoryโa quiet but clear concession.
4. Criminal Case Still Ongoing โ๏ธ
Tornado Cash co-founders Roman Storm and Roman Semenov are still set to face trial on July 14, 2025 for allegedly laundering over $1 billion, including funds linked to North Koreaโs Lazarus Group.
๐ Takeaways
๐ Civil Case Closed: The U.S. government will not pursue further action to sanction Tornado Cash as an entity.
๐ Legal Precedent: Court rules that code โ property โ a major win for decentralized developers.
๐งพ SDN Explained: Being on the SDN list means your assets can be frozen and U.S. citizens cannot legally interact with you.
๐ต๏ธโโ๏ธ Criminal Trial Looms: The co-founders still face serious charges โ including aiding cybercriminals.
๐ข Policy Reversal: OFAC quietly stepping back could signal a shift in how regulators handle decentralized tools.