Tornado Cash Transfers Reach $1.85 Billion in First Half of 2024

Deposits in the OFAC-sanctioned cryptocurrency mixer Tornado Cash reached $1.85 billion in the first six months of 2024. For comparison, the total for 2023 was $1.28 billion, according to Flipside Crypto.

The service’s popularity has increased amid ongoing US Treasury sanctions and legal battles involving its founders.

In August 2022, OFAC blacklisted Tornado Cash for its role in laundering over $7 billion in illicit funds. More than $455 million of this was linked to the North Korean hacker group Lazarus Group. 

OFAC sanctions entail blacklisting anyone interacting with the service. Exchanges complying with regulations are prohibited from accepting deposits from such wallets. This does not deter wrongdoers attempting to convert illicitly obtained funds into fiat.

According to Arkham Intelligence, a hacker responsible for the $100 million Poloniex breach has sent $76 million to the mixer since May. Deposits were also made by perpetrators linked to exploits of HECO Bridge and Orbit Chain ($166 million and $48 million, respectively).

Previously, one confirmed address used in the $234.9 million WazirX hack was funded via Tornado Cash.

In August 2022, Dutch authorities arrested Tornado Cash developer Alexey Pertsev on suspicion of money laundering and concealing criminal financial flows through the crypto mixer. In April 2023, a court placed him under house arrest.

On May 14, 2024, Pertsev was found guilty and sentenced to 64 months in prison. He has been incarcerated since then. On July 12, he was denied bail pending an appeal of the $1.2 billion laundering case. 

Similar charges have been brought against Tornado Cash co-founders Roman Storm and Roman Semenov. 

Storm was released on bail and has denied the charges. He awaits trial in December. Semenov remains free but has been sanctioned.

Since January 2024, Tornado Cash co-founders have been raising $1.5 million for legal defense. For this purpose, the JusticeDAO fund was established.

The initiative has been supported by former NSA and CIA employee Edward Snowden, as well as members of the crypto community. 

Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin donated 30 ETH to the legal defense fund for Pertsev and Storm.