Crypto Exchanges Allow Russians to Circumvent Sanctions, Report Alleges

Major crypto exchanges have failed to prevent sanctioned Russian banks and traders from transacting, according to a blockchain forensics report. At least two established coin trading platforms continue to allow Russians to use their bank cards in peer-to-peer deals, the analysis…

Stablecoin Issuer Tether Won’t Freeze Tornado Cash Addresses, Says Premature Freezing Could Jeopardize Investigations

While the crypto community is still talking about the U.S. government banning the ethereum mixing platform Tornado Cash, the stablecoin issuer Tether Holdings Limited revealed on Wednesday that the company would not “freeze Tornado Cash addresses.” Tether’s recently published blog post…

Ethereum’s Pivot to Proof-of-Stake Consensus Worries Users About the Possibility of Protocol Level Censorship

The upcoming consensus change that Ethereum, the second largest cryptocurrency by market cap, is planning to execute in September has worried many users about the possibility of censorship happening at a protocol level. This means that, even by interacting directly with…

Uniswap Censors 253 Crypto Addresses Blacklisted for Crime, Sanction Associations

According to a recently published report, the decentralized exchange (dex) Uniswap has blocked roughly 253 cryptocurrency addresses allegedly tied to crimes or government sanctions. The information was discovered by the software developer Banteg who analyzed and saved the shared logs from…

OFAC’s Tornado Cash Ban Causes Github Suspensions and the Blacklisting of Crypto Addresses Holding $437M

On August 8, the ethereum mixing service Tornado Cash, and all the crypto addresses associated with the platform, were officially banned by the U.S. Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Asset Control (OFAC). Following the ban, the internet hosting service for software…

Russian Media Censor Roskomnadzor Blocks Major Crypto News Website

Bits.media, a leading news outlet in Russia’s crypto space, has been blocked by Russia’s telecom and mass media watchdog, Roskomnadzor. The site is now inaccessible through most Russian internet providers, the online edition announced, stating it intends to contest the measure….

Russian Crypto Mining Giant Bitriver Considers Challenging US Sanctions

Russia’s Bitriver, one of the largest operators of crypto mining data centers, may take legal action against the U.S. over the decision to place it under sanctions. The company insists it does not help the Russian government to circumvent international restrictions….

Nepal Shuts Down Crypto Websites, Apps — Warns About Engaging in Crypto Activities

The Nepal Telecommunications Authority has issued a warning that crypto activities are illegal. The regulator emphasized that websites, apps, and online networks related to crypto activities are prohibited to be used, operated, or managed within the country. Nepalese Regulator’s Crypto Warning…

ETH Mixer Tornado Cash Reveals Blocking OFAC Sanctioned Ethereum Addresses via Chainalysis Oracle Contract

According to the project’s official Twitter account, Tornado Cash, the ethereum mixing service that allows participants to shuffle ether, is blocking flagged ethereum addresses listed on the Office of Foreign Assets Control’s (OFAC) Specially Designated Nationals And Blocked Persons list (SDN)….

Wasabi Wallet to Begin Censoring Coinjoin Transactions

Wasabi Wallet, a privacy-oriented bitcoin-only wallet, has announced it will start introducing censorship methods into its mixing procedures. The announcement was made on social media, where the official account of Wasabi explained that a blacklist will prevent some UTXOs (unspent transaction…