65 organizations jointly pressured Trump to withdraw the re-evaluation of the Tornado Cash developers.

More than 65 advocacy groups are demanding that Trump stop the Justice Department's re-examination of Tornado Cash developer Roman Storm, to test whether the U.S. will imprison programmers for the crimes of others, or treat code as protected speech. These organizations are calling for immediate clarity in regulatory and tax policies, while ending what they call “regulation by prosecution.”

65 organizations press Trump in the largest scale in history

(Source: Solana Policy Institute)

More than 65 organizations in the U.S. cryptocurrency sector are urging President Donald Trump to intervene in the prosecution of Tornado Cash developer Roman Storm, arguing that the case poses a broader threat to software development and the U.S. position in the digital finance space. This appeal marks one of the largest coordinated policy push actions by the cryptocurrency industry since Trump returned to the White House.

The letter praised the government's series of initiatives over the past year, including the repeal of IRS broker rules, the passage of the Genius Act, and the overturning of previous restrictions on the use of digital assets in retirement plans. The report believes that these measures have opened the door to new economic activities, but it also points out that some unresolved issues continue to compel developers and businesses to look overseas.

The scale of 65 organizations is extremely rare in the history of the crypto industry. This list may include mainstream advocacy groups such as Coin Center, Blockchain Association, DeFi Education Fund, as well as representatives from major DeFi protocols like Uniswap, Aave, and Compound. This united action across competitors and different segments shows that the Tornado Cash case touches the core nerve of the entire industry: whether developers should bear criminal responsibility for the malicious use of their code.

Four Core Demands of the Joint Letter

Withdraw Remaining Charges Against Storm: Halt the retrial of money laundering and sanctions violations.

Clear Tax Guidance: Issued tax rules regarding staking, mining, airdrops, and forks.

Confirm that crypto loans are not taxed: Using cryptocurrency as collateral for loans should not trigger capital gains tax.

Protect Open Source Development: SEC and CFTC establish temporary rules to protect permissionless development activities.

At the time this letter is issued, senior officials in the U.S. government are increasingly paying attention to digital assets. This year, Trump has pardoned several well-known figures in the field, including Ross Ulbricht, Zhao Changpeng, and Arthur Hayes. These pardons demonstrate Trump's relatively friendly stance towards the cryptocurrency industry, but the Tornado Cash case will test whether this friendliness extends to more controversial privacy tool developers.

Roman Storm Case: Does Writing Code Constitute a Crime?

The core request in the letter is for the Department of Justice to withdraw the remaining charges against Roman Storm. In August 2025, Storm was convicted of conspiracy to operate an unlicensed money transfer business. This charge carries a maximum sentence of five years in prison. The jury was unable to reach a consensus on two additional, more serious charges involving money laundering and violations of sanctions, resulting in a mistrial for those charges. The prosecution has not yet confirmed whether it will retry him on these charges. During the post-trial motions and possible appeal process, Storm remains out on bail.

The signatories believe that Storm's work on Tornado Cash represents the writing of open-source software rather than operating a currency service. They noted that the Department of Justice issued guidance earlier this year stating that prosecutors should not charge developers of decentralized software with unlicensed money transmission. Although this policy does not have retroactive effect, it is expected that Storm's lawyers will mention this policy in their ongoing legal challenge.

The core controversy of this case lies in whether developers should be held responsible for the malicious use of their code. Tornado Cash is an Ethereum-based privacy mixer that allows users to enhance privacy by breaking the transaction chain. This technology is neutral in itself; it can be used for legitimate privacy protection and may also be exploited by criminals for money laundering. The prosecution believes that Storm knowingly continued to maintain and promote Tornado Cash despite its use for money laundering, thus constituting conspiracy. The defense argues that Storm merely wrote and published open-source code, and once the code is deployed on the blockchain, he loses control and should not be held responsible for subsequent malicious use.

In recent months, pressure from cryptocurrency advocacy groups has been increasing. In April of this year, the DeFi Education Fund sent a letter to White House cryptocurrency advisor David Sachs, stating that the Roman Storm case is a “lawless prosecution,” and warned that the case could hinder developers from building permissionless tools. This message has been supported by industry figures including Fred Ehrsam, Matt Huang, and Tim Beiko, who believe that earlier guidance from FinCEN states that non-custodial software developers should not be classified as money transmitters, which makes the current case contrary to established policy.

According to the “Release Roman Storm” movement, supporters have raised $5.3 million, with a goal of $7 million to fund his defense. This crowdfunding support shows that the crypto community views the Storm case as a critical battle for the survival of the industry, rather than just an individual legal dispute.

Broader policy appeals and industry challenges

This letter addressed to President Trump, co-signed by industry professionals, is not limited to Storm's personal situation. The organization urges the Treasury Department and the IRS to issue long-delayed tax guidance regarding staking rewards, mining rewards, cross-chain transfers, airdrops, forks, and re-basing, areas that have been affected by uncertainty and have pushed activities overseas.

The signatories also requested confirmation that using cryptocurrency as collateral for loans would not be taxed, and that donations of digital assets should be treated the same as donations of stocks. They also called on the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission and the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission to establish temporary rules to protect open-source, permissionless development while the broader regulatory framework is still underway. The updated FinCEN guidelines reaffirm that non-custodial blockchain software is not subject to the Bank Secrecy Act, which is also a key requirement.

These demands reflect the systemic challenges facing the crypto industry in the United States. While the Trump administration has shown goodwill in certain areas, key technical and tax issues remain unresolved. Should staking rewards be taxed when received or when sold? Do airdrops constitute taxable income? These seemingly technical questions actually determine the feasibility of crypto projects operating in the United States. If tax uncertainty persists, developers and project teams will continue to choose to operate in jurisdictions with clearer regulations, such as Singapore, Switzerland, or the UAE.

The U.S. government also views the growth of digital assets as a priority to enhance America's economic competitiveness and is pushing various agencies to adopt a coordinated cryptocurrency regulatory framework. A joint letter from 65 organizations sends a clear message to the Trump administration at this critical moment: If the U.S. wants to maintain its leadership in the crypto industry, it must stop treating developers as criminals and establish a clear and fair regulatory framework.