Here’s what happened in crypto today
Today in crypto, Tornado Cash co-founder Roman Storm has asked a US judge to dismiss his conviction, arguing that prosecutors failed to prove his intent to assist bad actors, the White House pulled its backing of Brian Quintenz to lead the US Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC), and the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) is weighing a plan to permit stock trading on blockchain rails.Roman Storm seeks acquittal of Tornado Cash money transmission chargeRoman Storm, co-founder of Tornado Cash, has asked a US federal judge to acquit him of his sole conviction for unlicensed money transmission and the jury’s hung counts for money laundering and sanctions violations, arguing prosecutors failed to prove he intended to help bad actors misuse the crypto mixer.According to legal documents filed on Sept. 30 to the US District Court for the Southern District of New York and reviewed by Cointelegraph, Storm’s defense argued prosecutors failed to prove he intended to help bad actors use Tornado Cash. This, according to the defense, would nullify the grounds for his conviction based on negligent inaction.“Storm and bad actors was a claim that he knew they were using Tornado Cash and failed to take sufficient measures to stop them. This is a negligence theory,” the motion states.The defense further claims that “lacking affirmative evidence that Mr. Storm acted with the intent to assist bad actors, ”the government attempted to meet its willfulness burden by claiming that the defendant failed to prevent misuse. “It is a claim that is antithetical to the willfulness standard and unsupported by the law,” the motion states.A motion for acquittal asks the judge to throw out charges or a verdict because the prosecution’s evidence, even if taken as true, is legally insufficient.White House withdraws Brian Quintenz as CFTC nomineeThe White House withdrew Brian Quintenz’s nomination to lead the Commodity Futures Trading Commission on Tuesday, with Quintenz telling Cointelegraph that he would return to the private sector.“Being nominated to chair the CFTC and going through the confirmation process was the honor of my life,” Quintenz told Cointelegraph, confirming earlier reports that his nomination was pulled.“I am grateful to the president for that opportunity and to the Senate Agriculture Committee for its consideration. I look forward to returning to my private sector endeavors during this exciting time for innovation in our country,” he added.Quintenz is a former CFTC commissioner and the head of crypto policy at a16z. He was widely backed by the crypto industry, but his nomination faced delays in Congress and reported pushback from crypto exchange Gemini co-founders Tyler and Cameron Winklevoss.The CFTC is set to be a key regulatory agency for crypto under the Trump administration, but has been without a chair for almost a year and is being led solely by Acting Chair Caroline Pham.SEC weighs plan to allow blockchain-based stock trading amid crypto push: ReportThe US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) is reportedly developing a plan to allow blockchain-registered versions of stocks to trade on cryptocurrency exchanges — a move that would mark a significant step toward integrating digital asset technology into the traditional financial system.The proposal, still in early stages, would let investors buy and sell stock tokens — digital representations of shares in publicly traded companies — on approved crypto platforms, The Information reported Tuesday, citing people familiar with the matter.The initiative reflects growing regulatory openness to tokenization, the process of creating blockchain-based tokens that mirror ownership of traditional assets. SEC Chair Paul Atkins recently described tokenization as an “innovation” the agency should seek to advance, not restrict. Regulators “should be focused on how do we advance innovation in the marketplace,” he said, noting that tokenized assets could improve access to financial markets and reduce costs.Interest in stock tokenization has accelerated in recent months. Platforms such as Robinhood and Kraken have begun offering tokenized stock products. At the same time, Nasdaq has requested SEC approval for a rule change that would allow it to list tokenized securities on its exchange.Crypto exchange Coinbase is also reportedly seeking SEC approval to offer tokenized equities.