Acting US Attorney General Todd Blanche said that the Department of Justice will no longer target blockchain developers and coders for crimes committed by third parties using their products. Pointing to a new approach to enforcement under the Trump Administration, Blanche said that as long as coders and developers are not involved in criminal activity, the DoJ and FBI will not attempt to prosecute them. The issue arose after several developers involved in privacy protocols like Tornado Cash were prosecuted or threatened with prosecution under the Biden Administration. Tornado Cash developer Roman Storm and a colleague were indicted in 2023, and Storm was convicted in August 2025 after Tornado Cash…
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Will Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen follow through on predecsessor Steven Mnuchin's cold wallet monitoring plan? (Photo: Wikimedia Commons)Good and bad: Treasury delays cold wallet monitoring rule
The delay gives crypto more time to fight it, but shows that regulators plan to press ahead in the new administration
Proposed on Dec. 18, the regulation would require exchanges to collect personal know-your-customer data from private or “unhosted” cold wallets on the sending or receiving end of transactions of more than $3,000. The Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) originally gave the proposal a very unusual 15-day comment period, which included the Christmas and New Year’s holidays.
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Will incoming Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen be a better friend to crypto than Steven Mnuchin? (Photo: C-SPAN)Crypto gets breather from FinCEN’s last-minute unhosted wallet regulation
President Joe Biden’s regulation freeze stops FinCEN from rushing through a ‘midnight rule’ collecting personal data from private wallets
Outgoing Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin caused an outcry on Dec. 18, when the department’s Financial Crimes Enforcement Network announced the new rule requiring banks, cryptocurrency exchanges, and other money services businesses to collect know-your-customer (KYC) data about anyone who wants to transfer $3,000 or more to or from an “unhosted” wallet.
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U.S. Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin wants to regulate wallets on his way out the door (Photo: Wikipedia).FinCEN drops ‘midnight rule’ regulating private crypto wallets
U.S. Treasury Department’s Financial Crimes Enforcement Network issued a proposal requiring exchanges to collect personal data from self-hosted wallets
Essentially, what FinCEN wants is to require banks, cryptocurrency exchanges, and other money services businesses (MSB) to collect identifying data about anyone who wants to transfer $3,000 or more to or from an “unhosted” wallet.