Alexey Pertsev, developer of the protocol, remains detained.
The mixer operates as a service with no direct control over the funds processed.
An appeals court in the United States annulled the sanctions imposed by the Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) on the Tornado Cash protocol, a ruling that could well mark the beginning of more open and favorable regulation for cryptocurrencies in the country. The decision was announced through a court file published yesterday, January 21.
The Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) of the US Department of the Treasury. sanctioned to Tornado Cash on August 8, 2022, accusing it of facilitating the laundering of more than $7 billion in cryptocurrency since its creation in 2019.
According to OFAC, the illicit funds include $455 million stolen by the North Korean-sponsored Lazarus hacking group and millions more from cyberattacks such as the Harmony Bridge and Nomad thefts in 2022. The agency established that Tornado Cash enabled these activities by offering cryptocurrency mixing services without effective controls..
Alexey Pertsev, developer of the protocol, was convicted of money laundering in the Netherlands in May 2024. Pertsev received a sentence of five years and four months in prison after being accused of facilitating the laundering of $1.2 billion in illicit assets to through the platform.
Then, Pertsev shared on the social network X: «Exactly two years after my arrest in Amsterdam, I am back behind bars, appealing a five-year sentence. This fight is not just about me; It’s about our privacy rights and the future of software developers. Join this legal battle and donate through Juicebox.”
Now, in a turn of events that many will consider a victory for privacy advocates, the United States Court for the Western District of Texas has struck down OFAC’s sanctions, as noted at the beginning of this article. According to the court order:
It is ordered and declared that the judgment of the District Court is reversed and the case is remanded to the District Court for further proceedings in accordance with the opinion of this Court.
Order issued by the United States District Court for the Western District of Texas.
Despite the court’s decision, it is crucial to note that Alexey Pertsev remains detained on money laundering charges. It is worth remembering that, although Pertsev developed a cryptocurrency mixer, It does not retain or control user funds. These tools work in an automated way to mix transactions and protect privacy, without the operator intervening directly in the management of funds.
TORN shoots up 200%
It is worth noting that, in the last few hours, the TORN cryptocurrency, the native token of the Tornado Cash protocol, has skyrocketed by more than 200%. Right now, its price is $25.67, according to data from CoinMarketCap.
The rise of the token occurred just after the court ruling, which ruled that US sanctions against the platform’s smart contracts were not applicable. The court’s decision stipulates that these contracts cannot be considered “property” under US law due to their immutable and autonomous nature.
