On Friday, April 26, Acinq announced that its Lightning Network bitcoin wallet, Phoenix, will cease services for U.S. residents from May 3, 2024. This announcement followed closely on the heels of the Samourai Wallet indictment and what is perceived as a targeted U.S. government effort against financial privacy and non-custodial solutions. Lightning Network Platform Phoenix…
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Edward Snowden criticized the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) for targeting app developers aimed at restoring financial privacy, responding to the arrest of the founders and CEO of cryptocurrency mixing service Samourai Wallet on charges related to money laundering and operating without a license. Snowden’s remarks show his ongoing support for financial privacy within the…
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The U.S. Department of Justice has indicted the founders of Samourai Wallet, Keonne Rodriguez, and William Lonergan Hill, on charges of operating an unlicensed money-transmitting business and laundering over $100 million through illicit transactions. DOJ Indicts Samourai Wallet Founders for Allegedly Operating $100 Million Crypto Laundering Ring According to the indictment unsealed by the Southern…
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Samourai Wallet, River, Strike, Swan, and other companies in the cryptocurrency space have sent a letter to the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN), commenting on the proposed rules over mixing transactions introduced in October. These companies are asking FinCEN to withdraw its proposal because it considers it inadequate for many reasons, criticizing it for being…
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Samourai, a privacy-focused bitcoin wallet, revealed the changes in the recent Bitcoin Knots software used by Ocean, a Bitcoin mining pool, censor Whirlpool transactions, a kind of coinjoin operation. The wallet explained that Ocean is pursuing a “very slippery slope” by filtering these types of transactions. Samourai Wallet Reveals Ocean Is Censoring Privacy Transactions Samourai…
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A new documentary delving into 3D firearm printing and Defense Distributed’s Cody Wilson is set to release. Directed by Jessica Solce and produced by Encode Productions and the Samourai Wallet team, the film will digitally debut on October 21, 2023.
‘Death Athletic’ Features Cody Wilson and the Rise of 3D-Printed Guns
“Death Athletic: A…
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In a pioneering move, Samourai, the privacy-focused bitcoin wallet, has revealed a BTC to XMR atomic swap feature aimed at revolutionizing onchain privacy in Bitcoin. Addressing the widespread issue of tainted change, also known as leftover unspent transaction outputs (UTXOs) remaining from Whirlpool Coinjoins, this could represent a monumental advancement in the cryptocurrency landscape. Tackling…
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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 outputs) from registering to Coinjoins, the method Wasabi and other wallets use to enhance…
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On Tuesday, journalist Laura Shin published a story that claims to identify the 2016 Genesis DAO hacker who siphoned 3.6 million ethereum from the decentralized autonomous organization. While the story surprised the crypto community, one of the biggest eye-openers was the blockchain analysis methods leveraged, and the claim that Chainalysis allegedly “de-mixed” Wasabi transactions. Community…
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Trezor Enables Coinjoin for Trezor T Model to Bolster a ‘New Era of Privacy’
According to Trezor, the crypto hardware wallet manufacturer, owners of the Trezor T model can now use a Coinjoin feature to preserve their privacy. Trezor had announced the Coinjoin feature’s impending arrival on the hardware wallet seven months ago, and the feature went live on April 19. Trezor Adds Coinjoin to Software Suite Owners of…
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