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Users of Tornado Cash win US appeal to overturn sanctions designation

( November 27, 2024, 01:15 GMT | Official Statement) -- MLex Summary: The US Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit sided with users of Tornado Cash, finding that the US government can't impose sanctions on the cryptocurrency mixer because it doesn't belong to anyone. "The immutable smart contracts at issue in this appeal are not property because they are not capable of being owned," the appellate court ruled, directing a district court to grant a motion of partial summary judgement to the Tornado Cash users. "Perhaps Congress will update IEEPA, enacted during the Carter Administration, to target modern technologies like crypto-mixing software. Until then, we hold that Tornado Cash’s immutable smart contracts (the lines of privacy-enabling software code) are not the “property” of a foreign national or entity, meaning (1) they cannot be blocked under IEEPA, and (2) OFAC overstepped its congressionally defined authority."...

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