Arbitrum DAO Votes on Funding Legal Defense for Embattled Tornado Cash Developers
Summary:
The Arbitrum DAO is voting on a proposal to fund Roman Storm and Alexey Pertsev, the developers of Tornado Cash, for their legal defense. If passed, the community could donate up to 600,000 ARB tokens, worth nearly $1.3 million, over a year. More than 80% of the votes favor the maximum fund tier. The developers face several charges from U.S. authorities, including money laundering and conspiracy to commit sanctions violations related to their platform's alleged role in laundering over $1 billion in illicit funds. This comes after GoFundMe canceled a fund collection for the developers' legal fees, citing a violation of their terms of service.
The Tornado Cash developers' legal defense could potentially receive funding through a vote by the Arbitrum DAO. If successful, this voting process could provide the Tornado Cash developers with up to 600,000 ARB tokens (worth nearly $1.3 million at present). A proposal brought forth by anonymous delegate DK, on March 7, aims to support a solid legal defense for Roman Storm and Alexey Pertsev, the developers responsible for Tornado Cash. The funds could also aid in raising public awareness about privacy-protecting technologies, and the legal responsibilities developers have in that regard. The aim in gathering support for their legal fund is to protect the future of privacy-related technology and further the principles of innovation, decentralization, and personal autonomy within the tech sector. The funding levels available for voting are tiered between 200,000 to 600,000 ARB. So far, more than 80% of votes have favored the maximum tier. The voting window will close on March 14.
Tornado Cash and its founders are accused of facilitating the laundering of over $1 billion in questionable funds, which has led to their addition to the US sanctions list. This move has effectively banned US citizens from using the service and has stirred controversy among cryptocurrency enthusiasts.
Proponents of Tornado Cash suggest that the platform simply supplies the software required for decentralized money transfers, challenging the charge that the platform is involved in illegally transmitting money. Crypto advocacy group Coin Center stated that FinCEN guidelines indicate that companies which provide anonymizing software should not be classified as money transmitters.
Storm and Pertsev are facing several accusations from U.S. authorities, including conspiracy to launder money, conspiracy to violate sanctions, and conspiracy to operate an illegal money transmission business. The penalties for these charges can range from five years in prison to twenty years for each offense. Additionally, their legal challenges threaten not just their capability to continue their work, but also the basic principles of decentralization and personal freedom which form the foundation of projects built with privacy-protecting technology.
A few days before the community proposal was put forth, GoFundMe discontinued a fundraising event meant for collecting the duo's legal expenses, stating that it violated their terms of service and risked causing harm or liability to GoFundMe, its employees or users.
Published At
3/8/2024 7:18:31 PM
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