Wow. The US Treasury Dept. today announced it is lifting sanctions on Tornado Cash, a cryptocurrency mixing service that state-sponsored hackers from North Korea have been massively using to launder their stolen billions.

"Based on the Administration’s review of the novel legal and policy issues raised by use of financial sanctions against financial and commercial activity occurring within evolving technology and legal environments, we have exercised our discretion to remove the economic sanctions against Tornado Cash as reflected in Treasury’s Monday filing in Van Loon v. Department of the Treasury."

https://home.treasury.gov/news/press-releases/sb0057

h/t to nostr:nprofile1qy2hwumn8ghj7un9d3shjtnddaehgu3wwp6kyqpqs0j6fh5yzkqxr5jn9tlrch23fn8a743vgzfcqgx6wrakuj2nv5ksa96hn4 for the heads up. Weaver said: "The US government has just said "money laundering is legal as long as the process is automated."

"Every wei that flows through Tornado Cash, even if 'legitimate,' is helping the North Korean nuclear regime by hiding illegitimate flows," Weaver told me.

Here's Treasury sanctioning Tornado Cash in 2022: https://home.treasury.gov/news/press-releases/jy0916