DeFi

Tornado Cash developer Alexey Pertsev denied bail to appeal money laundering conviction – DL News

Published

6 months ago

17 July, 2024

Tornado Cash developer Alexey Pertsev denied bail to appeal money laundering conviction – DL News

Tornado Cash developer Alexey Pertsev will remain in prison, a Dutch court has ruled.
He has spent the last two months in prison after being convicted of laundering $2.2 billion.
Pertsev appealed his conviction.
The court and prison will not allow Pertsev to access a computer, the Internet and data, his lawyer said.

A Dutch court on Friday refused to release Alexey Pertsev, the Tornado Cash developer convicted of money laundering in May, while he prepares his appeal.

The appeals court in ‘s-Hertogenbosch in the Netherlands ruled that Pertsev would remain in custody, a spokesman said. DL News.

His lawyers, Keith Cheng and Judith de Boer, argued that Pertsev was not a flight risk and needed access to a computer and the internet to prepare for his appeal trial.

“The court considers that his continued detention does not prevent him from preparing his defense,” Cheng said. DL News.

But lawyers disagree.

“In a case involving such fundamental legal issues, pre-trial detention is unacceptable,” Mr de Boer said.

“This unprecedented case shows under what circumstances a software developer can be held criminally liable for misuse by a third party,” she added. That is why Pertsev should be free to wait and prepare for the appeal – “which will benefit the entire legal system.”

Digital installations rejected

At a hearing last month, Cheng said he presented 18 points of preparation for his appeal where Pertsev would need access to a computer, as required by the court to make the request.

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However, Pertsev’s request for release was rejected, to Cheng’s surprise. He had already filed a request with the prison where Pertsev is being held, which was also rejected.

“I have made a request to the prison director for digital facilities, which include having a good computer, unlimited internet access, using specialized software and having external data media,” Cheng said.

But the computer and facilities could not be granted because it goes against the prison’s security rules, the defense lawyer explained. He presented the prison’s refusal to the court, but without success, he said.

For a case that revolves around the technical aspects of DeFi in terms of smart contracts, relays and protocol governance, Pertsev is a crucial source of knowledge.

“This kind of preparation cannot be done by a lawyer,” Cheng said. “We need [Pertsev] because he has laid the foundations on the technical aspects of his case and he knows how to explain certain things.

Cheng before note that Pertsev’s detention violates the European Convention on Human Rights, which outlines the rights of everyone to a fair trial.

The verdict

On May 14, a Dutch court of three judges sentenced The 31-year-old Russian national was sentenced to 64 months in prison, or more than five years, for laundering $2.2 billion in stolen and hacked cryptocurrencies through the cryptocurrency mixer Tornado Cash.

The judges accepted the prosecution’s argument that Pertsev and his co-developers failed to prevent criminals, such as North Korean hackers Lazarus Group, from laundering illicit proceeds through the platform.

Tornado Cash is an open-source protocol that ensures the privacy of otherwise transparent transaction records on the Ethereum network by hiding transaction histories. It runs on automated smart contracts.

Pertsev was arrested in August 2022, days after the U.S. Treasury imposed sanctions on Tornado Cash. Pertsev was taken into custody and prosecutors unsealed his money laundering charges three months later.

Cryptocurrency industry experts say the developer’s arrest has created a chilling effect within the open source community. Developers fear being held accountable for how others use their software, especially when it comes to developing digital privacy tools.

Pertsev spent eight months in prison before being released under house arrest last year. He was eventually released on parole.

Today, his lawyers say Pertsev will pose no greater flight risk than before.

The trial

At his trial in March, Pertsev argued He added that he could not be held responsible for the crimes committed by others who abused the Tornado Cash platform. He also said that since the protocol is automated and open source, no one can stop it.

The judges were not convinced. In their verdict in May, they said that if the developers wanted to prevent crime, they should have included it in the protocol.

Roman Storm, also the developer of Tornado Cash, will go on trial in the United States in September. He is charged with money laundering, conspiracy to operate an unlicensed money transmission service and conspiracy to violate U.S. sanctions laws.

Inbar Preiss is a regulatory correspondent at New DL. Email the author at inbar@dlnews.com.

Updated July 12 to reflect comments from Pertsev’s attorneys, Keith Cheng and Judith de Boer.

Fuente

DeFi

If You Missed BONK and PEPE This Year, This Viral New Crypto Might Be Your Salvation

Published

6 months ago

29 July, 2024

CoinFlix Staff

If You Missed BONK and PEPE This Year, This Viral New Crypto Might Be Your Salvation

Bonk and Pepe appear set to net new investors 10x to 100x returns over the next 12 months. However, cryptocurrencies in the DeFi play-to-earn gaming sector could offer even greater returns. As August approaches, Rollblock is emerging as a standout DeFi play-to-earn gem with the potential to 100x-1000x gains in the fourth quarter and beyond.

The project features an innovative revenue sharing model and exceptional accessibility, attracting players and investors. Additionally, Rollblock’s extensive game library of over 150 titles and enhanced sports betting are further driving excitement for the platform. Cryptocurrency analysts are expecting a sudden surge in demand. 800% a push for Rollblock from the beginning of September.

Bonk remains strong despite market fluctuations

While most well-known cryptocurrencies struggled throughout July, Bonk remained strong. As one of the highest-grossing meme cryptocurrencies of 2024, Bonk rose over 24% in July, while most cryptocurrencies experienced negative fluctuations.

Investors looking to add a relatively safe memecoin to their portfolio should consider Bonk. While Bonk is unlikely to generate explosive gains of 250x to 1,000x from here on out, Bonk could still theoretically provide returns in the 20x to 100x range.

Pepe should see a big rise in the next bull run

Alongside Bonk, Pepe has yet to go through a bull run. This means that there are still substantial gains to be made from Pepe over the next 12 months.

Pepe is down 4% in 30 days, but that shouldn’t worry Pepe investors in 2024. Experts believe Pepe’s best days are still ahead, with crypto analysts predicting a 10x to 50x surge in the next election cycle around November.

In the long term, Pepe could surpass the 100x mark for today’s investors. However, Pepe is a memecoin, and one should exercise caution when investing in purely speculative assets that have no utility.

Rollblock’s Unprecedented Hype Potential Could Push It Past 100x Valuation in Q4

Rollblock is a GambleFi Play-to-Earn token that integrates centralized and decentralized gambling on a single platform. By allowing players to earn rewards through active participation and gameplay, the platform creates a compelling incentive structure that appeals to both casual and competitive players.

With its cutting-edge blockchain technology, Rollblock offers top-notch security that keeps bets and transactions on the platform secure. The platform’s lack of KYC mandates appeals to both users who value anonymity and security.

Rollblock’s revenue sharing model, which allocates up to 30% of casino revenue to RBLK token holders, is a major draw for investors. The model involves burning half of the repurchased tokens and distributing the other half to stakers, increasing the token’s value and encouraging long-term investment.

The platform is also constantly evolving thanks to user feedback which has enabled updates such as the upcoming sports betting feature within the platform’s casino. This addition will complement Rollblock’s extensive game library of over 150 titles, ranging from traditional poker to innovative blockchain-based games.

RBLK is expected to emerge as one of the leading DeFi tokens in 2024. With a price of $0.0172 with impressive growth potential and over 140 million tokens sold recently, Rollblock is on track to enter the top 100 cryptocurrencies by Q4, making today a lucrative time to buy RBLK tokens.

Discover the exciting opportunities of the Rollblock (RBLK) presale today!

Website: https://presale.rollblock.io/

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No spam, no lies, only insights. You can unsubscribe at any time.

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DeFi

Cryptocurrency sector is experiencing ‘most misjudged moment’ since 2020, says venture capitalist Arthur Cheong

Published

6 months ago

29 July, 2024

CoinFlix Staff

Cryptocurrency sector is experiencing ‘most misjudged moment’ since 2020, says venture capitalist Arthur Cheong

Veteran cryptocurrency investor Arthur Cheong believes the digital asset sector offers long-term holders a golden opportunity.

Cheong, the founder of DeFiance Capital, tell His 171,700 followers on social media platform X indicate that he believes decentralized finance (DeFi) is hugely undervalued.

According to Cheong, DeFi projects are innovating at a rapid pace and leaving traditional financial (TradFi) companies in the dust.

“It’s been a long time since I’ve been this excited about the risk/reward and potential upside of DeFi. This is probably the most misjudged moment since the pre-DeFi summer of 2020, with extremely promising prospects.

I see opportunities not only in OG (original) DeFi, but also in some newer projects that are evolving rapidly and growing at a pace that fintech startups will do anything to match.

The veteran investor also believes that crypto is now here to stay following recent launch from the Ethereum spot market (ETH) exchange-traded funds (ETFs) last week.

“Overall, the floodgates are open and there is no turning back. TradFi asset managers will continue to launch new crypto products because, guess what: there is huge demand for them!”

I expect them to launch actively managed crypto ETFs [in the] coming years. ”

Earlier this month, Cheong laid that it might be a bad strategy for cryptocurrencies to seek mass adoption, believing that digital assets are designed to disrupt several key financial sectors.

“I think we should accept that cryptocurrencies may not be suited for mass adoption like Web2, but rather are optimized for some narrow but very high-impact use cases like stateless global money, cross-border payments, and decentralized finance.

Chasing mass adoption of normies may be chasing the wrong Grail from the start.

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Disclaimer: Opinions expressed on The Daily Hodl are not investment advice. Investors should do their own due diligence before making any high-risk investments in Bitcoin, cryptocurrencies or digital assets. Please be advised that your transfers and trades are at your own risk, and any losses you may incur are your responsibility. The Daily Hodl does not recommend the buying or selling of any cryptocurrencies or digital assets, nor is The Daily Hodl an investment advisor. Please note that The Daily Hodl participates in affiliate marketing.

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