This case represents the first major prosecution of a DeFi protocol creator where the government is attempting to hold developers personally responsible for how others use their code. Storm's statement that 'DeFi dies with me' signals an unprecedented legal precedent that could determine whether decentralized financial systems can exist outside traditional control structures.
DeFi Trial: Tornado Cash Case Tests Biblical Economic Control
📰 What Happened
Tornado Cash co-founder Roman Storm faces a critical trial delay decision as his July 14 court date approaches in New York. His legal team contests the admission of testimony from an unnamed hacker who allegedly used the Ethereum-based mixer for laundering funds. Storm, indicted two years ago on money laundering and unlicensed money transmitter charges, warns 'If I lose, DeFi dies with me.' The defense argues late witness disclosure could unfairly prejudice jurors.
📖 Prophetic Significance
The Tornado Cash trial exemplifies the prophesied tension between decentralized and centralized financial control. Storm's prosecution for creating privacy-enabling code, rather than directly engaging in illicit activity, reveals how authorities are expanding control over financial systems. The prosecution's focus on an anonymous witness who used the platform for laundering demonstrates the biblical pattern of governments seeking total visibility into transactions. This aligns with prophecies about end-times financial surveillance, where even the underlying architecture of privacy becomes criminalized.