Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin has made headlines again, this time for donating a large sum of ETH to help the developers of Tornado Cash fight legal battles. This act of support comes shortly after Buterin sold off a bunch of memecoins he held.
Buterin’s Memecoin Sale and Donation
Buterin sold off a bunch of memecoins, including Neiro, MOONDENG, DEGEN, and KABOSU, for about 140.6 ETH. He also received a donation of 100,000 USDT from the CATE project.
Following this, Buterin donated 100 ETH to the legal defense fund for Tornado Cash developers Alexey Pertsev and Roman Storm. This is his second donation to this cause, having previously donated 30 ETH in May.
Tornado Cash: A Controversial Platform
Tornado Cash is a platform that mixes crypto assets to make it hard to track their origins. While it has legitimate uses, it has also been used by hackers and criminals to launder money.
The US Department of Justice has accused Tornado Cash of facilitating over $1 billion in money laundering since 2019. This led to the arrest of Pertsev and Storm, who are facing charges of aiding money laundering.
Crypto Community Stands Up for Developers
The crypto community has largely rallied behind the Tornado Cash developers, arguing that they shouldn’t be held responsible for how others use their platform.
Besides Buterin, other prominent crypto entities like Matter Labs and the Uniwao DAO have donated significant amounts to the developers’ legal defense fund.
Many crypto enthusiasts see these legal cases as crucial, fearing that a government victory could discourage developers from working in the crypto industry.
As of now, the defense fund for Alexey Pertsev holds 56.19 ETH, while Roman Storm’s fund has received pledges of 327.41 ETH.
