US Treasury Drops Case Against Tornado Cash

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The US Treasury Department announced that a final court judgment is unnecessary in the lawsuit concerning its sanctions on Tornado Cash, as the crypto mixer has been removed from the sanctions list.

In August 2022, the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) sanctioned Tornado Cash, accusing it of facilitating money laundering for the North Korean hacking group, Lazarus. This led several users to sue the regulator.

Following a court ruling favorable to Tornado Cash, the US Treasury removed the mixer and related smart contract addresses from the Specially Designated Nationals (SDN) list on March 21, and stated that “this matter is now moot.”

The US Treasury remarked, “Because this court, like all federal courts, must ensure it has Article III jurisdiction over the case, briefing on mootness is warranted.”