Tornado Cash Co-Founder’s Trial Begins Amid Claims of No Involvement in Crypto Laundering

Key Points

1. Roman Storm, co-founder of Tornado Cash, is on trial for allegedly enabling money laundering by the Lazarus Group, a North Korean hacking collective.

2. Storm's defense argues that Tornado Cash is a legitimate privacy tool and that developers should not be held liable for misuse by third parties.

3. The trial's outcome could set a precedent for how privacy-enhancing technologies are regulated in the U.S.

4. The case highlights the tension between preventing illicit financial flows and preserving legitimate privacy protections in the crypto industry.

5. Roman Semenov, another co-founder, remains at large, adding complexity to the trial.