US Treasury Lifts Tornado Cash Sanctions

US Treasury Reverses Sanctions on Tornado Cash

• The US Treasury has removed Ethereum mixer Tornado Cash from OFAC’s sanctions list.
• Tornado Cash was initially sanctioned in August 2022 for allegedly laundering over $7 billion in virtual currency.
• A fifth circuit judge ruled that the Treasury overstepped by sanctioning Tornado Cash’s smart contracts, as software cannot be classified as property.
• Coinbase supported the lawsuit against the sanctions, arguing they were unjust.
• Roman Storm, co-founder of Tornado Cash, faces a pending money laundering trial following his arrest in 2023.

The US Treasury lifted sanctions on Tornado Cash after a court ruling deemed its actions an overreach, highlighting ongoing concerns about financial innovation and security.