Overview

• SPI said it will contribute $500,000 to support appeals for Roman Storm and Alexey Pertsev, signaling cross-chain backing for developers of the Ethereum-based mixer.
• Storm was convicted in Manhattan of operating an unlicensed money-transmitting business and faces up to five years in prison after jurors deadlocked on laundering and sanctions counts that prosecutors could retry.
• Pertsev was sentenced by a Dutch court to more than five years for money laundering, with his case highlighted by supporters as part of a broader fight over developer responsibility.
• A top DOJ official reportedly signaled prosecutors would not bring the charge used against Storm when software is “truly decentralized” and non-custodial, leaving policy and appellate outcomes in focus.
• Storm’s defense fund has reached about $5.4 million toward a $7 million target, buoyed by an Ethereum Foundation match of up to $1 million, a $500,000 pledge from Federico Carrone, and SPI’s $500,000.