In a letter to Attorney General Merrick Garland, Senators Cynthia Lummis and Ron Wyden wrote with concern about the Justice Department’s view on money transmitter licensing. They paid special attention to the case against Roman Storm, co-founder of Tornado Cash, who is charged for running an unlicensed money transmission firm.
Senetor Lummis and Wyden state that non-custodial crypto service providers do not meet the standard money transmitter definition stated in the Bank Secrecy Act and FinCEN. They highlight that bitcoins have a clear ownership throughout transactions thus the DOJ’s view on custody and control is rejected.
The senators bring to attention FinCEN’s authority in the interpretation of the requirements of money transmission and caution against the wide application of the DOJ’s standard which could affect various services.
The motion to dismiss the Tornado Cash charges by the prosecution failed because the prosecutors still think that Storm is responsible for the Tornado Cash and is involved in the criminal activity. The changing of the crypto regulation market causes questions about the way the traditional frameworks are adapting to the technology development.
