Most Influential: Todd Blanche

The crypto manufacture praised a memo signed by Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche directing the Department of Justice to extremity “regulation by prosecution.”

Dec 15, 2025, 3:00 p.m.

A four-page memo signed by Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche directed the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) to workout much discretion successful prosecuting crypto cases by ceasing immoderate cases that “superimpose regulatory frameworks connected integer assets” until regulatory agencies trade caller frameworks for the sector.

It was a memo praised by the crypto industry, even arsenic it raised concerns that the DOJ mightiness spell casual connected fraud oregon different transgression activities. Attorneys said successful April, aft the memo was published, that they did not expect the DOJ to really instrumentality it casual connected intelligibly fraudulent actions, but rather, that the DOJ would hold for clarity from the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission oregon Commodity Futures Trading Commission to much intelligibly specify however antithetic crypto assets mightiness autumn nether the explanation of a information oregon commodity.

On a applicable level, it’s hard to gauge what benignant of interaction the memo really had. It’s intolerable to cognize however galore cases the DOJ mightiness person brought but for the memo, and successful ongoing cases, prosecutors mostly said the memo did not apply.

Defense attorneys representing Keonne Rodriguez and William Lonergan Hill asked a judge to flip retired the lawsuit against the Samourai Wallet developers, citing the memo; some yet pleaded blameworthy to a conspiracy charge and were sentenced to 5 and four years successful national prison, respectively. Prosecutors pursuing charges against Terra/Luna creator Do Kwon said the memo did not use to their case; helium aboriginal pleaded blameworthy to conspiracy and ligament fraud charges and was sentenced past week to 15 years successful prison.

In the 1 lawsuit wherever prosecutors acknowledged modifying their case owed to the memo, the lawsuit against Tornado Cash developer Roman Storm, the DOJ lone dropped 1 portion of 1 charge; Storm was inactive convicted connected a conspiracy to run an unlicensed wealth transmitter concern complaint and volition beryllium sentenced successful the coming months.

Still, Blanche’s memo signaled a displacement successful however the DOJ mightiness attack crypto cases, reflecting a broader alteration wrong the national authorities nether existent President Donald Trump, which became acold much crypto-friendly than erstwhile President Joe Biden’s administration.

Most Influential: Roman Storm

The Tornado Cash developer’s proceedings this summertime is grounds that the crypto manufacture is inactive severely lacking regulatory clarity.