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The crypto advocacy group said OFAC must act within its statutory authority by sanctioning bad actors, not open-source software tools.

The Blockchain Association has thrown fresh support behind six plaintiffs suing the United States Treasury Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) over its sanctions on the crypto mixer Tornado Cash.

In a Nov. 20 amicus curiae brief to a U.S. appellate court, the crypto advocacy group argued OFAC’s decision to sanction the privacy protocol was not only unlawful but exceeded its statutory authority and was both “arbitrary and capricious” — contrary to the U.S. Constitution.

It’s the second amicus brief filed by the Blockchain Association supporting a group of Tornado Cash users appealing a lower court’s ruling that upheld OFAC’s decision to add the cryptocurrency mixer to its list of sanctioned entities.

Today we filed an amicus brief in the 5th Circuit appeal of Van Loon v. Treasury regarding OFAC’s sanctions against Tornado Cash.

Read Senior Counsel @MTCoppel's thread below for more. https://t.co/1pmSAt1Bds https://t.co/c5ScaTDr9N pic.twitter.com/e9ySvcKdeM
— Blockchain Association (@BlockchainAssn) November 20, 2023

Blockchain Association senior counsel Marisa Coppel emphasized in a Nov. 20 statement that OFAC needs to focus on sanctioning bad actors rather than outright banning tools, which she claimed it has no authority over.

“OFAC must see Tornado Cash for what it is: a tool that can be used by anyone,” Coppel said. “Rather than sanctioning a tool with a lawful purpose, OFAC should remain focused on the bad actors that misuse such tools.”

“OFAC’s action sets a dangerous new precedent that drastically exceeds their authority and jeopardizes law-abiding Americans’ right to privacy.”

In its brief, the Blockchain Association suggested OFAC should act within the bounds of the law by seeking approval from Congress to ban crypto mixers such as Tornado Cash.

“The proper remedy is to seek legislation from Congress that would provide supplemental authority in the uniquely decentralized digital asset context — not to improperly stretch its existing authorities,” it said.

“Such a power-grab would be a slippery slope that could threaten all manner of internet-based tools that have heretofore been freely available.”

The Blockchain Association has long held that Tornado Cash has no owner or operator and can function automatically without human intervention or assistance.

5/ OFAC’s authority only extends to persons or property…the Tornado Cash software is neither.

There is no owner.
No operator.
It functions autonomously.
And immutably.
— Marisa Tashman Coppel (@MTCoppel) November 20, 2023

OFAC first sanctioned Tornado Cash in August 2022. It alleged that individuals and groups had used the mixer to launder more than $7 billion in cryptocurrencies since 2019, including the $455 million stolen by the North Korea-affiliated Lazarus Group.

Crypto exchange Coinbase also backed the suit, pledging to

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Crypto mixers’ popularity booms as illicit addresses push volumes to ATH: Report

July 15, 2022 Coin Telegraph

Coin Telegraph

Blockchain analytics firm Chainalysis highlighted that 10% of all funds coming from illicit addresses are sent to crypto mixers.

As on-chain activities slow down during the crypto winter, usage of cryptocurrency mixers has doubled in 2022, with addresses classified as “illicit” being the top contributor.

Cryptocurrency mixers, also called “tumblers,” provide anonymity to transactions, making the sender or receiver of the transaction completely unidentified. While this has a valid use case for everyday users, hackers have used it to hide from authorities.

In a report by analytics firm Chainalysis, data shows that the 30-day moving average of the total daily value received by crypto mixers reached a new all-time high of $51.8 million in April 2022. The amount is double the incoming volume received at the same time in 2021.

According to the firm, almost 10% of all funds coming from illicit addresses are sent exclusively to crypto mixers. Additionally, data from the second quarter of 2022 shows that funds sent to mixers by illicit addresses come from stolen funds and fraud shops.

While mixers are not illegal in nature, this might change as regulators have started to look into ways to bring regulation to this area. In March, the United Kingdom’s National Crime Agency (NCA) expressed that it’s seeking to regulate coin mixers to comply with laws related to Anti-Money Laundering.

In May, crypto mixer Blender.io was sanctioned by the United States Treasury because of its part in the infamous Axie Infinity hack, where $620 million in digital assets were stolen. The government agency noted that under the sanctions, all of the mixer’s properties in the United States will be blocked and must be reported.

Meanwhile, Tornado Cash, a controversial crypto mixer at the center of some decentralized finance (DeFi) exploits, open-sourced its user interface code earlier in July. According to its developers, the move aims to meet its commitment to being fully decentralized and transparent.

Cryptocurrency mixer

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