Over the last few days, the crypto-verse witnessed the downfall of a successful project. Tornado Cash was undoubtedly a hotbed for hackers. Since the details of transactions are often hidden on the Ethereum-based platform, illegal funds were laundered on it. The US government imposed sanctions on the platform, and Dutch authorities followed suit by arresting the platform’s developer. While some were against this as it meddled with the decentralization factor of the industry, Kevin O’Leary, aka Mr. Wonderful, was rather glad about the ordeal.
The crypto-verse witnessed widespread adoption this year. However, in a recent interview, O’Leary pointed out that Tornado Cash and similar services acted as a barricade between institutional capital and the crypto industry. Therefore, the downfall of the crypto mixing service was necessary.
O’Leary suggested that crypto mixers like Tornado Cash were linked to the “crypto cowboy culture.” Until this existed, the likelihood of increased institutional interest in crypto was relatively low, he noted. He further added,
“I think we’re getting to that stage now. Maybe we’re in the third or fourth inning towards that, but I’m tired of this crypto cowboy crap. I want to get involved in a regulated place where we can bring billions of dollars to work. I don’t need to be a crypto cowboy, and I don’t want to be one because I work in the regulated world.”
Was arresting Tornado Cash’s creator the right thing to do?
The crypto community was an audience to the collapse of multiple platforms. From Terra to Three Arrows Capital, these firms’ dramatic falls caused millions of losses. However, the founders of these platforms continue to live as free citizens. However, Alexey Pertsev, the founder of Tornado Cash, had to deal with the wrath of government officials. While crypto Twitter seemed to be rising in support of Pertsev, O’Leary suggested that the whole scenario was a necessary sacrifice. Speaking about the arrest, he added,
“At the end of the day, it’s okay to arrest that guy. Why? He’s messing with the primal forces of regulation […] If we have to sacrifice him, that’s okay, because we want to have some stability in that institutional capital.”
He further suggested that the crypto-verse should emerge as a “rules-based environment.” Only then will it lure in more institutional capital.