The Ethereum Foundation has committed $500,000 toward the legal defense of Roman Storm, a co-founder of Tornado Cash, who is facing federal charges in the U.S.
In a further display of support, the Foundation announced it would match up to $750,000 in donations from the community.
Ethereum Foundation Provides Support for Roman Storm as Trial Approaches
Storm is scheduled to go on trial on July 14, 2025, in federal court in Manhattan. He faces charges that include conspiracy to operate an unlicensed money transmitter, conspiracy to launder money, and conspiracy to violate U.S. sanctions.
The Ethereum Foundation characterized its financial contribution as a defense of privacy rights and promotion of open-source development.
“Privacy is normal, and writing code is not a crime,” the Foundation asserted in a statement shared on X.
The EF is donating $500K to the legal defense of Roman Storm, and we will match up to a further $750K in donations from the community.
Privacy is normal, and writing code is not a crime.
— Ethereum Foundation (@ethereumfndn) June 13, 2025
Storm was indicted in August 2023 for his involvement in the creation and maintenance of Tornado Cash, a cryptocurrency mixing service accused of helping facilitate the laundering of over $1 billion in illicit funds.
The platform is alleged to have allowed users to hide the origins and destinations of their transactions, a feature that U.S. authorities contend was exploited by hackers and criminal organizations to transfer stolen assets.
As the trial date nears, prosecutors and regulators have intensified their scrutiny of crypto tools associated with privacy and decentralization. Storm’s defense posits that the case endangers the core principles of decentralized finance (DeFi) by criminalizing open-source development.
“In 31 days, I face trial,” Storm stated in a recent post on X. “The DOJ wants to bury DeFi, saying I should’ve controlled it, added KYC, and never built it. SDNY is trying to crush me, blocking every expert witness. If I lose, DeFi dies with me.”
Co-founder Roman Semenov has also been charged but remains at large, reportedly residing in Russia. A third developer, Alexey Pertsev, was convicted of money laundering by a Dutch court in May and received a sentence of over five years in prison. He is currently under electronic monitoring as he appeals the conviction.
Tornado Cash was sanctioned by the U.S. Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) in 2022, which claimed the mixing service had facilitated over $7 billion in illicit transactions since 2019 and had not implemented adequate safeguards against criminal misuse.
Storm’s legal team had sought to have the charges dismissed, contending that OFAC exceeded its authority by sanctioning the smart contracts associated with the mixer.
This legal challenge followed a separate court ruling that questioned the agency’s jurisdiction over decentralized code.
As the trial approaches, the Ethereum Foundation’s financial backing represents a significant show of support for Storm and sparks important discussions about the extent to which developers should be held accountable for permissionless code.
Vitalik Buterin Makes Substantial Donation to Tornado Cash Developers
In January 2025, Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin contributed 50 ETH—approximately $170,000—to support the legal defense of both Roman Storm and Alexey Pertsev.
@VitalikButerin has stepped forward with a substantial donation to support the legal defense of Tornado Cash developers.#Buterin #ETHhttps://t.co/b6gbH3KxZw
— Finance Newso.com (@Finance Newso) January 1, 2025
This contribution was confirmed through the Juicebox project “Free Pertsev and Storm,” which has raised over $650,000 to date through JusticeDAO, a decentralized fund supported by the crypto community.
Buterin’s assistance comes amidst escalating legal challenges faced by the developers. The U.S. Department of Justice had announced its intention to pursue federal charges against Storm, including claims of money laundering and violations of sanctions.
DOJ pursues federal charges against Roman Storm, cofounder of Tornado Cash, after dropping unlicensed money transmission charge.#TornadoCash #RomanStorm https://t.co/ZGXe7IGREZ
— Finance Newso.com (@Finance Newso) May 16, 2025
Although the charge concerning unlicensed money transmission was later dismissed, the legal actions against Storm have triggered backlash within the crypto sector.
In April, the DeFi Education Fund urged the Trump administration to intervene, labeling the DOJ’s actions as a “lawless prosecution” against open-source software developers. The petition has gained traction, collecting signatures from prominent figures in the industry, including Coinbase’s Fred Ehrsam, Paradigm’s Matt Huang, and Ethereum core developer Tim Beiko.
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