Report on Pressure from Cryptocurrency Leadership
On April 29, information from The Block revealed that, in the context of Tornado Cash co-founder Roman Storm's upcoming trial, cryptocurrency industry leaders have collectively called on the White House to stop prosecuting open-source software developers. A letter from the DeFi Education Fund sent to David Sacks, the White House's cryptocurrency lead, emphasized the request for the Trump administration to halt the Department of Justice's "overreach" against software developers.
Perspective on Developer Responsibility
The letter emphasized that developers cannot control how third parties use their code and should not be criminally prosecuted for it. If prosecutions continue, President Trump's goal of making the United States a global cryptocurrency center may become difficult to realize.
Conflicts Between Government Agencies
Although the Department of Justice recently declared it would no longer regulate the cryptocurrency industry through criminal charges, the Southern District of New York Court seems to not follow this principle. This coordination has received support from over 70 industry experts, including Matt Huang, Paradigm co-founder, and Mike Dudas, The Block co-founder, along with Greg Xethalis, general counsel of Multicoin Capital.
Conclusion
Cryptocurrency leaders are exerting significant pressure on the government to eliminate unfair charges against developers. Protecting those who create new technologies is essential to further develop cryptocurrency in the United States.
