Dragonfly Capital might be the goal of federal expenses stemming from its early funding in Twister Money developer PepperSec, Inc., however the enterprise agency says it’s ready to “vigorously defend” itself if prosecutors pursue the case.
In a Friday social media post, Dragonfly Capital managing companion Haseeb Qureshi defended the agency’s early backing of Twister Money — an open-source protocol that permits customers to obscure blockchain transactions — courting again to August 2020.
“We made this funding as a result of we consider within the significance of open-source privacy-preserving expertise,” mentioned Qureshi, including that the corporate had consulted outdoors authorized counsel earlier than investing and was assured Twister Money was compliant.
Regardless of this authorized opinion, Twister Money builders Roman Storm and Roman Semenov have been charged with cash laundering and sanctions violations by the US Legal professional’s Workplace for the Southern District of New York in August 2023.
Storm’s legal trial is underway in New York, the place he faces federal expenses that might result in more than 40 years in prison.
On Friday, prosecutors indicated they might pursue expenses towards Dragonfly for its funding within the Twister Money group 5 years in the past.
“We consider the federal government’s assertion in court docket at the moment was primarily to undermine a protection of Twister Money,” Qureshi mentioned, including that bringing expenses in any case this time could be “outrageous.”
“We don’t consider the DOJ would really deliver such absurd and groundless expenses. But when they do, we intend to vigorously defend ourselves,” he added.
Associated: Ethereum core developer testifies in Roman Storm defense as gov’t rests case
Devs declare Twister Money was a privateness instrument, however prosecutors don’t purchase it
Twister Money’s builders described the platform as a decentralized, non-custodial privateness instrument that enabled customers to ship and obtain digital property with out revealing their pockets historical past.
Sometimes called a “mixer,” it pooled cryptocurrencies from a number of customers earlier than redistributing them, successfully breaking the direct hyperlink between sending and receiving addresses.
In 2022, the US Treasury Division’s Workplace of International Belongings Management (OFAC) sanctioned Tornado Cash, alleging it facilitated multibillion-dollar cash laundering, supported cybercrime and posed a risk to nationwide safety. The instrument was additionally accused of obfuscating illicit transactions.
Regardless of sanctions and. legal investigations, Twister Money noticed a resurgence in 2024. Information from Flipside Crypto confirmed $1.9 billion in deposits throughout the first six months of that 12 months.
Associated: Judge allows testimony on ‘feasible’ Tornado Cash code changes
