# Vitalik's Tornado Cash Donation

*Author: Bankless*
*Published: Jan 4, 2025*
*Source: https://www.bankless.com/fr/read/vitalik-tornado-cash*

---

[![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/e4/b7/e4b77544-5a37-4f0b-8824-8440aa348476/content/images/2025/01/image---2024-12-12T132109.268.png)](https://www.bankless.com/sponsor/mantle-1706216729?ref=read/play-eternum-starknets-mmo&email=true)

  

Vitalik's Tornado Cash Donation
  

  
  Published on Jan 4, 2025

[
  
  View in Browser

](https://www.bankless.com/metaversal)
 

---
[**Sponsor: Mantle**](https://www.bankless.com/sponsor/mantle-1706216729?ref=read/play-eternum-starknets-mmo&email=true) — Mass adoption of decentralized & token-governed technologies.

[Visit mantle.xyz to Learn More](https://www.bankless.com/sponsor/mantle-1706216729?ref=read/play-eternum-starknets-mmo&email=true)

.  .  .

 
  
    
      
      NEWS ROUNDUP
    
    
  
  
    
  Vitalik Donates to Roman Storm and Alexey Pertsev’s Legal Fund
  

  

 

[![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/e4/b7/e4b77544-5a37-4f0b-8824-8440aa348476/content/images/2025/01/image---2025-01-03T162135.265.png)](https://www.bankless.com/metaversal)**Vitalik Buterin recently donated 50 ETH to support Roman Storm and Alexey Pertsev in their legal battle against the US Department of Justice.**

This donation highlights Vitalik’s recognition of the case's significance in defending privacy and open-source development. Roman Storm expressed his gratitude in a tweet, thanking Vitalik for the contribution and his support.

[![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/e4/b7/e4b77544-5a37-4f0b-8824-8440aa348476/content/images/2025/01/Xnapper-2025-01-04-10.08.26.png)](https://x.com/rstormsf/status/1874126446941118924?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw)Roman Storm’s case remains active, but in December, his legal team filed a motion to dismiss the criminal charges against him. This motion references a Fifth Circuit Court ruling that deemed sanctions on Tornado Cash [unlawful](https://cryptoslate.com/tornado-cash-token-surges-to-2-year-high-after-us-court-rules-treasury-sanctions-unlawful/). The legal team further argues that Tornado Cash’s smart contracts operate autonomously, without control by any single individual. This autonomy undermines claims that Roman violated the International Emergency Economic Powers Act.

Roman Storm’s trial is set for April 14, 2025, over allegations of money laundering and sanctions violations linked to Tornado Cash. With 36% of the $2M fundraising goal reached, you can contribute to their legal defense here: [https://wewantjusticedao.org/#trial](https://wewantjusticedao.org/#trial)

### 📰 General news
- **Tether Council **[retires amid MiCA stablecoin regulations](https://www.theblock.co/post/332986/tethers-general-counsel-retires-in-wake-of-mica-stablecoin-regulations-coming-into-effect)
- **Hyperliquid **[staking is now live on mainnet](https://x.com/HyperFND/status/1873664112036901320)
- **Usual **[announced they are activating their fee switch](https://x.com/usualmoney/status/1874273040886096125)

### 🎨 Cryptoart & music
- **Jordan Lyall** [announced that he is the new CPO of Artblocks](https://x.com/JordanLyall/status/1874838211056562240)
- **Luna **[announced that they are collaborating with DJ Wukong, powered by $MUSIC](https://x.com/agentstarter/status/1874788343390879944)

### 🏆 Digital collectibles
- **The ALTS by Adidas** [avatars have been revealed 3 years after mint](https://nftnewstoday.com/2024/12/12/alts-by-adidas-one-brand-staying-in-the-nft-game/)
- **Doodles' **[ultimate guide in preparation for airdrop](https://nftnow.com/guides/doodles-guide/)

### 🎮 Decentralized gaming
- **BIRDS **[is gaining traction on Sui](https://hashheadlines.com/birds-gamefi-gains-traction-on-sui-with-engaging-blockchain-news/)
- **UnmarshalAI **[announced their partnership with HyperGT](https://x.com/hypergpt/status/1872661668951462036)
- **Nakamoto Games' **[mobile app went live on Android](https://x.com/NakamotoGames/status/1874785517046550790)

### 🪙 Memes & NFTfi 
- **Fartcoin **[continues to be top 5 in mindshare](https://www.cookie.fun/)
- **Pepe **[token takes off after Elon Musk changes his twitter profile picture](https://cryptonews.com/news/pepe-blasts-up-after-elon-musks-post-pepe-unchaineds-pump-pad-could-be-the-next-100x/)
- **Meme Index**, [the new meme coin index token, raised $1.5M in presale](https://99bitcoins.com/news/pr-news/meme-coin-market-cap-leaps-over-100bn-ahead-of-first-meme-coin-index-fund/)

### 📱 Onchain social
- **Farcade AI** [is now playable Worldcoin](https://x.com/Farcade_AI/status/1874253306736107852)
- **Lens **[mainnet is expected to go live soon](https://x.com/LensProtocol/status/1874396113979265289)
- **Dan Romero **[announces his new ZK experiment](https://x.com/dwr/status/1874897657841557828)

### 🌐 Virtual Worlds
- **awe **[announced the launch of their game engine powered by ONCYBER](https://x.com/awe_box/status/1874854413573239147)

---