Call to Action: DeFi Education Fund Urges Trump Administration to Stop DOJ's Crackdown on Crypto Developers
Open-Source Crypto Developers Under Fire: Key Figures in the Cryptocurrency Sector Petition Trump Administration to Halt Legal Actions Against Open-Source Developers and Coders
On Monday, the DeFi Education Fund publicly called on the Trump administration to step in and halt the Department of Justice's (DOJ) relentless pursuit of open-source crypto developers. This plea follows the ongoing saga surrounding Tornado Cash co-founder Roman Storm's upcoming trial in New York, even after the DOJ recently declared an end to "regulation by prosecution."
In a scathing letter, the DeFi Education Fund accused the Southern District of New York (SDNY) of attempting to hold software developers criminally responsible for the actions of third parties using their code in a brazen and unprecedented move. This aggressive stance puts every developer writing code in good faith at risk of prosecution, potentially stifling innovation and empowering politically-driven enforcement.
The document highlighted the SDNY's continued persecution of Storm, facing charges related to money transmitting and other liabilities for the conduct of unrelated bad actors. Mind you, since the Treasury Department's Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) sanctioned Tornado Cash in 2022, a November court ruling had already determined the US Treasury had exceeded its authority by sanctioning the platform, and it was delisted from OFAC's Specially Designated Nationals (SDN) in March 2025.
The fallout from this debacle includes Storm's detention, Alexey Pertsev's 5-year sentence in the Netherlands after being convicted of money laundering, Ethereum's co-founder Vitalik Buterin's financial contributions to Storm's and Pertsev's legal defense, and industry-wide concerns about the case's potential implications for crypto developers.
The DOJ's Questionable Tactics and Legal Loopholes
The DeFi Education Fund's letter stressed that the SDNY's actions directly contradict long-standing guidance issued by the Treasury Department's Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN), which has traditionally clarified that developers of self-custodial, peer-to-peer protocols are not considered money transmitters. This guidance, which has been relied upon since 2019, is now under fire from the DOJ's legal position.
Interestingly, the DOJ's recent memo expressed principles that align with FinCEN's guidance on money transmission laws. However, these principles do not cover certain statutes applicable to Storm's case, such as 18 USC § 1960, under which he's charged, as it pertains to decentralized, open-source privacy software development.
Furthermore, the DOJ's decision to continue prosecuting Storm goes against the broader enforcement deprioritization policy shift that advises prosecutors to focus on individuals who commit illicit acts rather than platform developers or operators who provide general-purpose tools.
Industry Leaders Voice Their Concerns
As the case unfolds, crypto industry leaders have expressed growing unease about the potential ramifications for open-source developers. The case of Tornado Cash is being likened to prosecuting an automaker because someone used their car for an illegal deed, potentially setting a dangerous precedent that could stifle innovation and privacy tools in blockchain technology.
This situation has sparked a broad, unified pushback from the industry, with criticisms zeroing in on the case's potential threats to the foundation of open-source crypto development in the U.S.
In this game-changing moment, the DeFi Education Fund urges President Trump to take decisive action to protect American software developers, restore legal clarity, and end the DOJ's unjustified overreach. The stakes, they argue, could not be higher.
- The DeFi Education Fund expressed concern about the DOJ's pursuit of open-source cryptocurrency developers, urging President Trump to intervene and halt this action to avoid stifling innovation in the technology industry.
- The ongoing trial of Tornado Cash co-founder Roman Storm, who is facing charges related to money transmitting and other liabilities, has been criticized as an unprecedented move that puts every developer writing code in good faith at risk of prosecution.
- In a recent letter, the DeFi Education Fund highlighted the Southern District of New York's continued persecution of Storm, even after the Treasury Department's Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) had delisted Tornado Cash from its Specially Designated Nationals (SDN), citing legal loopholes and questionable tactics employed by the DOJ.
