Crypto history
Tornado Cash: the 2025 delisting belongs in the history too
The sanctions designation, its removal and cases against individuals are separate legal events.
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The 2022 designation
US Treasury designated Tornado Cash in August 2022 and described the service as facilitating laundering, including proceeds linked to North Korea. That announcement records the government's sanctions action and rationale at that time. Quoting its prohibitions without a date can mislead readers about later developments.
The 2025 removal
On 21 March 2025, Treasury announced that it had removed the economic sanctions against Tornado Cash following review of the legal and policy issues and a filing in Van Loon v. Department of the Treasury. Treasury also said its concerns about North Korean cybercrime and other sanctions risks continued. Delisting should not be rewritten as a general finding that every transaction was lawful.
Keep the actors separate
Code, a frontend, a governance participant and an alleged operator are not interchangeable defendants. Delisting the named service does not by itself resolve a separate criminal prosecution or a different country's proceedings. This entry records the two Treasury actions; it is not legal advice or a complete status report on every Tornado-related case.