The Ethereum Foundation (EF) has pledged $500,000 to the legal defense of Roman Storm, a co-founder and developer of Tornado Cash. This contribution aims to support Storm, who faces charges related to the operation of the crypto mixing service as an unlicensed money transmitter.
In a post on X on Friday, June 13, 2025, the Ethereum Foundation announced its commitment of $500,000 to Storm's defense. Furthermore, the foundation plans to match up to an additional $750,000 in donations from the cryptocurrency community, potentially bringing the total support to $1.25 million.
Storm's trial is scheduled to begin on July 14 in New York. He faces charges of money laundering, conspiracy to operate an unlicensed money transmitter, and conspiracy to violate U.S. sanctions. These charges stem from allegations that he conspired to run Tornado Cash, which authorities claim facilitated illicit fund movements.
The Ethereum Foundation has voiced strong support for Storm, stating, "Privacy is normal, and writing code is not a crime." This stance highlights the foundation's belief that developers should not be held criminally liable for the actions of third parties using their open-source code.
Roman Storm also addressed the situation in a Friday X post, stating, "In 31 days, I face trial. The DOJ wants to bury DeFi, saying I should've controlled it, added KYC, never built it. SDNY is trying to crush me, blocking every expert witness. If I lose, DeFi dies with me."
The EF's support for Roman Storm follows a similar pledge of $1.25 million to Alexey Pertsev's defense fund. Pertsev, another individual connected to Tornado Cash, was arrested in the Netherlands in 2022 and found guilty of money laundering in May 2024, receiving a sentence of over five years in prison. The Ethereum Foundation cited similar reasons regarding privacy and code in their support for Pertsev.
The U.S. Department of Justice's approach to regulating digital assets and prosecuting related crimes appears to be shifting. Storm's lawyers requested the case be dropped in December after a judge ruled that the U.S. Treasury's Office of Foreign Assets Control exceeded its authority in sanctioning the mixer's smart contracts.
Another Tornado Cash developer, Roman Semenov, who was named in the same indictment as Storm, remains at large, with reports suggesting he may be hiding in Russia.
The Ethereum Foundation's financial assistance to Storm signals a firm commitment to defending privacy rights within decentralized ecosystems and protecting open-source developers. This move comes amid increasing scrutiny of crypto privacy tools used in decentralized finance protocols. By supporting Storm's legal battle, the foundation aims to set a precedent that safeguards developer freedom and innovation in privacy technologies.
