Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin has donated 100 ETH (around $240,000) to the Free Alexey & Roman Storm legal defense fund, which supports Tornado Cash developer Roman Storm. This is Buterin's third donation amid the developer's ongoing legal troubles. In total, the fund has raised over 327 ETH (around $785,000) from 148 donors to support his legal defense.
Southern District of New York Judge Catherine Polk Failla denied Storm's request to dismiss the charges, saying his actions were not protected by the First Amendment because the Tornado Cash code was functional, not speech-based. The trial is set for Dec. 2.
Storm faces charges of conspiracy to commit money laundering, operating an unlicensed money transmitting business and violating international sanctions. If convicted, he faces up to 45 years in prison.
Despite the sanctions, Tornado Cash continues to be popular, with deposits of around $2 billion in the first half of 2024 â up 50% from a year earlier.
Tornado Cash currently has a current price of $2.23, with a 24-hour trading volume of $9,854.32. The price has dropped by 0.47% in the last 24 hours, and Tornado Cash is ranked 986th on CoinMarketCap, with a market cap of $11,713,701.
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