Coin Center Says OFAC’s Tornado Cash Ban ‘Exceeds Statutory Authority,’ Plans to ‘Engage’ With US Watchdog

Coin Center Says OFAC"s Tornado Cash Ban "Exceeds Statutory Authority," Plans to "Engage" With US Watchdog

On August 15, the non-profit that focuses on policy issues facing crypto assets, Coin Center, published a blog post that says the organization is looking at the legality of the recent Tornado Cash sanctions enforced by the U.S. Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Asset Control (OFAC). The post, published by Coin Center’s Jerry Brito and Peter Van Valkenburgh, explains that by treating autonomous code as a ‘person’ “OFAC exceeds its statutory authority.” Coin Center Insists ‘OFAC Has Overstepped Its Legal Authority’

Coin Center’s executive director Jerry Brito and director of research Peter Van Valkenburgh had a lot to say in a blog post published Monday that talks about whether or not autonomous code, or a smart contract, can be considered a sanctioned ‘person.’ Coin Center’s Brito and Valkenburgh believe the U.S. government sent some kind of intended signal when OFAC sanctioned Tornado Cash. One that makes it so U.S. citizens are aware specific tools and software “should not be used by Americans even for entirely legitimate purposes.”

“As we suspected, we believe that OFAC has overstepped its legal authority by adding certain Tornado Cash smart contract addresses to the SDN List, that this action potentially violates constitutional rights to due process and free speech, and that OFAC has not adequately acted to mitigate the foreseeable impact its action would have on innocent Americans,” the Coin Center blog post explains.

Moreover, Coin Center believes that OFAC’s designation of specific autonomous contract addresses “exceeds its statutory authority under IEEPA.” Coin Center insists that a vague and overbroad interpretation of IEEPA could be used to attack first amendment protected speech. “If the SDN List becomes an ever-expanding list of specific open source protocols and applications that are ‘blocked,’ then isn’t that a restriction on the publication of speech?” the blog post asks.

Coin Center further details that it plans to engage with the U.S. Treasury Department’s watchdog, share views and hear the views OFAC authorities have about the situation. The non-profit further detailed that members of Congress inquired about the situation and Coin Center plans to keep these individuals briefed on the subject. Coin Center also plans to help innocent Americans who may have funds locked into the platform get a license to remove the ethereum lawfully. The non-profit organization concluded that the team is talking about litigation efforts to “counsel a court challenge to this action.” Tags in this story autonomous contract, Coin Center, Coin Center post, Ethereum, Ethereum (ETH), Ethereum Mixer, exceeds its statutory authority, financial privacy, IEEPA, Jerry Brito, legal, legalities, non-profit organization, OFAC, Peter Van Valkenburgh, Privacy, sanctioned Tornado Cash, Smart Contract, Tornado cash, Tornado Cash mixer, Treasury Department’s watchdog, US Treasury

What do you think about Coin Center looking into the legalities of the Tornado Cash sanctions and how the organization plans to engage with OFAC? Let us know what you think about this subject in the comments section below. Jamie Redman

Jamie Redman is the News Lead at Bitcoin.com News and a financial tech journalist living in Florida. Redman has been an active member of the cryptocurrency community since 2011. He has a passion for Bitcoin, open-source code, and decentralized applications. Since September 2015, Redman has written more than 5,700 articles for Bitcoin.com News about the disruptive protocols emerging today. Report: Celsius CEO Accused of Controlling Crypto Company"s Trading Scheme and Placing Bad Bets NEWS | 40 mins ago Embattled Crypto Lender Hodlnaut Seeks Judicial Management in Order to Rehabilitate the Company NEWS | 7 hours ago

Image Credits: Shutterstock, Pixabay, Wiki Commons Previous articleBitcoin, Ethereum Technical Analysis: ETH Falls Below $1,900 as Markets React to Weakening Chinese Economy Next articleBiggest Movers: DOGE Races to 3-Month High, XMR Hits Strongest Price Since June Disclaimer: This article is for informational purposes only. It is not a direct offer or solicitation of an offer to buy or sell, or a recommendation or endorsement of any products, services, or companies. Bitcoin.com does not provide investment, tax, legal, or accounting advice. Neither the company nor the author is responsible, directly or indirectly, for any damage or loss caused or alleged to be caused by or in connection with the use of or reliance on any content, goods or services mentioned in this article. Read disclaimerShow comments More Popular NewsIn Case You Missed ItAustralia to List Bitcoin ETF After 4 Clearinghouse Participants Commit to Meet Stringent Margin Terms

Australia is set to get its first bitcoin exchange-traded fund (ETF) after a report suggested the country"s clearinghouse, ASX Clear, confirmed that four market participants agreed to meet its stringent margin requirements. ASX Clear"s Margin Requirements An Australian clearinghouse controlling ... read more.Interest in Real Estate Investments in Spain Grew 400%, With Some Using Crypto and Stocks as Payment Method Iran to Increase Penalties for Unauthorized Cryptocurrency Mining Ethereum Foundation"s Financial Report Discloses It Holds $1.6 Billion in Assets, 80.5% Held in Ether Terra"s Algorithmic Dollar-Pegged Crypto UST Is Now the Third-Largest Stablecoin