$1.9 billion deposited in wallets despite OFAC sanctions

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50% Increase in Wallet Deposits in 2024 for Cryptocurrency Mixer Tornado Cash

As anticipated, cryptocurrency mixer Tornado Cash, despite sanctions imposed by the Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) and ongoing legal battles, recorded a significant increase of deposits in the first half of 2024.

Data from Flipside Crypto reveals that Tornado Cash received approximately $1.9 billion in deposits in the first six months of the year, a 50% increase over its 2023 total.

OFAC sanctions, imposed in August 2022 after North Korean hacker group Lazarus Group had used the protocol to launder approximately $455 million, do not appear to have deterred users.

Anyone interacting with the protocol risks being blacklisted, making conversion difficult. CRYPTOCURRENCIES in fiat through centralized exchanges.

Despite these restrictions, Tornado Cash remains popular among large hacker groups looking to hide their illicit funds.

Arkham Intelligence reported that the hacker responsible for the $100 million exploit of the Poloniex exchange has transferred $76 million to the mixer since May.

Even the authors of the exploits of HECO bridge and orbital chain moved $166 million and $48 million, respectively, in the first six months of the year.

The legal repercussions

Recent activity also includes a wallet address confirmed in the $235 million Indian exchange hack. WazirX On July 18, which was financed by a deposit Cash Tornado.

Meanwhile, the crypto community continues to challenge the sanctions with an ongoing lawsuit, claiming that blocking the service is illegal and unconstitutional.

However, the US Treasury considers cryptocurrency mixers a threat to national security and accuses Tornado Cash of failing to prevent money laundering.

Tornado Cash co-founders, Alexei Pertsev Roman storm and Roman Semenovface serious legal consequences. Pertsev was sentenced in 2023 to more than five years in prison in the Netherlands for money laundering.

Storm, who is in custody in the United States, has pleaded not guilty and filed a motion to dismiss all charges.

Despite sanctions and legal challenges, Tornado Cash continues to operate, underscoring the resilience and controversy surrounding the role of cryptocurrency mixers in the global financial landscape.

Roman Storm’s money laundering trial postponed

As mentioned, a U.S. District Court judge decided postpone the process for money laundering by Roman Storm despite the objections of the prosecution.

Last Friday, the judge Katherine Polk Failla of the Southern District of New York (SDNY) agreed to the defense’s request to postpone Storm’s trial for three months.

In particular, citing “new and complex factual and legal issues” as well as the need to translate “millions of pages of documents” into Russian.

The prosecution challenged the postponement, arguing the importance of a speedy trial and accusing the defense of exaggerating the volume of documents.

During the hearing, the defense argued that Tornado Cash was not created with criminal intent and had no control over users’ funds.

Judge Failla questioned prosecutors about the appropriate measures to take once the founders became aware of the illicit use of the service by North Korean hackers.

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