TeqGo.com
No Result
View All Result
No Result
View All Result
TeqGo.com
No Result
View All Result
Home Computer

Tether Stablecoin Brushes Off U.S. Tornado Cash Sanctions

Staff by Staff
August 24, 2022
in Computer
0
Tether Stablecoin Brushes Off U.S. Tornado Cash Sanctions
466
SHARES
1.5k
VIEWS
Share on FacebookShare on Twitter


A gold plated souvenir cryptocurrency Tether (USDT) coin arranged beside a screen displaying a trading chart.

Tether has basically said if the U.S. actually wants them to stop trading with sanctioned crypto wallets, then they can send them a note.
Photo: JUSTIN TALLIS/AFP (Getty Images)

The company behind Tether, the world’s most popular and widely used stablecoin, wants to have its bitcoin-shaped cake and eat it too. More accurately, it has previously claimed it works with U.S. financial regulators, but at the same time mentioned it doesn’t facilitate U.S. customers, so it doesn’t have to comply with orders.

Which is why when the U.S. treasury department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control laid out a host of controversial sanctions tied to crypto mixer Tornado Cash’s accounts, Tether has kept on keeping on working with the sanctioned wallets, the equivalent of puffing out its chest and asking U.S. regulators “what’re ya gonna do about it?”

Earlier this month, Department of Treasury officials announced sanctions against the crypto mixer Tornado Cash, saying the service had been used to launder over $7 billion worth of illicitly-gained crypto in just three years, a good chunk of that being funds stolen by hackers tied to sanctioned nations like North Korea. Those sanctions effectively put a litany of wallets associated with Tornado on a do-not-do-business-with list.

Crypto proponents have had problems with this move, mainly complaining that, instead of sanctioning any individuals, the restrictions targeted a decentralized smart contract and the code surrounding it. Now the Washington Post reported Wednesday that, based on data from crypto intelligence firm Dune Analytics, the company behind Tether has not blacklisted any of the sanctioned crypto accounts tied to Tornado Cash.

Tether did not immediately respond to Gizmodo’s request for comment about whether it could say if it was beholden to U.S. financial law. However, Paolo Ardoino, the company’s chief technology officer, told WaPo that they have not yet been contacted by U.S. officials with any “request” to stop doing business with Tornado Cash’s wallets. He further added that they “normally compl[y]” with U.S. regulators’ requests.

G/O Media may get a commission

Bite-sized language lessons
Babbel’s language lessons are created by real language experts to help you converse in real-world conversations.

This stance doesn’t exactly gel with what Tether has said in the past. The CTO said they are headquartered in Hong Kong and “does not operate” in the U.S. or onboard U.S. customers. As WaPo pointed out, Stuart Hoegner, a Canada-based lawyer who is general counsel for Tether and the crypto exchange Bitfinex, has previously stated that Tether is registered as a Money Service Business with the U.S. Financial Crimes Enforcement Network. Ardoino restated this around the time fellow stablecoin Ripple was targeted by the Securities and Exchange Commission in 2020, adding that they have “strict [know your customer]” applied to all Tether direct users.

Tether has had its run-ins with U.S. authorities before. Most recently, after the collapse of the Luna/Terra ecosystem—which fomented this most recent crash in the price of crypto—regulators made rumblings about the need to put stopgaps on stablecoins, which are supposed to be pegged 1-to-1 with the U.S. dollar and act as both a currency and collateral for different crypto trades. Tether had also found itself depegged from the dollar, despite being backed by reserve assets.

But Tether’s “come at me” stance might put them in the line of fire, according to experts and ex-heads of regulatory agencies quoted by The Washington Post. One unnamed former OFAC senior official told the newspaper that Tether seems to be testing the agency, and it’s “never a very good idea to test OFAC.”

It also puts another spotlight on just how much crypto proponents see OFAC’s move as both legally inconsistent and dangerous precedent for the entire scene. This past month, after Tornado Cash was sanctioned by the U.S., Dutch financial law enforcement arrested one of the mixer’s original developers, which users later discovered was Alexey Pertsev.

Crypto enthusiasts left their keyboards behind and reportedly protested in person in Amsterdam’s Dam Square last Sunday, according to CoinDesk. Protesters, which reportedly included Pertsev’s wife Xenia Malik, chanted “open source is not a crime.” This is a particular sticking point for the pro-Tornado Cash folks, as they say the creators behind the decentralized autonomous organization (DAO) running the program are not in charge of decisions. Dutch cops disagree, writing that founders have made significant profits thanks to crypto laundering activities. Still, Pertsev has not yet been officially charged with a crime.





Source link

Tags: Alexey PertsevBitcoinBitfinexCryptocurrenciesDune AnalyticsE-commerceFinancial technologyGizmodoInternet protocolsPaolo ArdoinoStablecoinStuart HoegnerTetherXenia Malik
Previous Post

Opendoor hires Seattle tech vet as CTO; ex-Blue Origin comms chief lands at Clorox – GeekWire

Next Post

Fitbit Inspire 3, Versa 4, Sense 2: Price, Specs, Release Dates

Next Post
Fitbit Inspire 3, Versa 4, Sense 2: Price, Specs, Release Dates

Fitbit Inspire 3, Versa 4, Sense 2: Price, Specs, Release Dates

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Recommended.

Microsoft Bing reports for local paper; Amazon returns to office; Bezos and the NFL – GeekWire

Microsoft Bing reports for local paper; Amazon returns to office; Bezos and the NFL – GeekWire

February 25, 2023
Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power: Meet the Harfoots

Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power: Meet the Harfoots

August 27, 2022

Trending.

What happened in the year 0 AD?

August 23, 2022

What is a 100000 year period called?

August 23, 2022

What does partner of the quarter mean Starbucks?

August 24, 2022

Is 50 years old a century?

August 23, 2022

Who left Fox 2 Detroit?

August 24, 2022
  • About us
  • Contact Us
  • Home
  • Privacy Policy and Disclaimer

© 2021-2023 Teqgo.com

No Result
View All Result
  • About us
  • Contact Us
  • Home
  • Privacy Policy and Disclaimer

© 2021-2023 Teqgo.com