(2023)
DOJ v. Tornado Cash
Year
2023
Criminal or Civil
Criminal
Year Resolved
Unresolved
Jurisdiction (Court/State)
U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York
Filed By
U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ)
Penalty/Fine (USD)
None imposed yet
Lawsuit Overview
The DOJ indicted Roman Storm and Roman Semenov, two co-founders of Tornado Cash, a cryptocurrency mixer, in August 2023 for facilitating over $1 billion in money laundering transactions, including hundreds of millions for the sanctioned North Korean Lazarus Group. The charges included conspiracy to commit money laundering, conspiracy to violate the International Economic Emergency Powers Act (IEEPA), and conspiracy to operate an unlicensed money transmitting business. Tornado Cash, a non-custodial platform, was alleged to have been used to obscure illicit funds, despite claims of being a privacy tool. On May 15, 2025, the DOJ dropped the charge under 18 U.S.C. § 1960(b)(1)(B) (failure to register with FinCEN) but will proceed to trial on July 14, 2025, for charges under § 1960(b)(1)(C) (transmitting criminally derived funds), money laundering, and sanctions violations. Storm was arrested in August 2023 and released on bail, while Semenov remains at large.
Category
Money Laundering, Sanctions Violations, Unlicensed Money Transmitting
Notable Individuals Involved
Roman Storm, Roman Semenov, Alexey Pertsev (third co-founder, charged in the Netherlands), Damian Williams (U.S. Attorney, SDNY), Todd Blanche (Deputy Attorney General)
Investor Loss Estimate
Case focuses on laundered criminal proceeds (over $1 billion, including $455 million from Lazarus Group’s Axie Infinity hack)
Final Outcome
Ongoing; charge under 18 U.S.C. § 1960(b)(1)(B) dropped on May 15, 2025, but trial set for July 14, 2025, on remaining charges
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