BlackRock BUIDL Platform Stained By 0.97 ETH Tornado Cash Inflow

BlackRock Inc’s newly launched institutional cryptocurrency fund allegedly received 0.97 Ethereum (ETH) via Tornado Cash, a popular crypto mixer known for facilitating money laundering. 

Unsolicited ETH Transaction Into BUIDL

On Tuesday, it was reported that investment asset management firm BlackRock sent a filing to the United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) informing the agency of its newly created tokenized asset fund. The new fund which is dubbed BlackRock USD Institutional Digital Liquidity Fund (BUIDL) emerged in alliance with Securitize, a renowned financial service provider. 

As a reputable asset manager, the introduction of BlackRock’s tokenized asset fund drew massive attention. It marked BlackRock’s attempt to expand and establish a foothold in the digital asset ecosystem. In a plot twist, the fund is suddenly drawing attention for the wrong reasons.

It’s now about 36 hours after its launch, and data shows that a wallet associated with BUIDL was spammed with unsolicited crypto from Tornado Cash. According to Arkham Intelligence, the 0.97 ETH is valued at approximately $3,324 considering the current market price of the crypto. 

Looming Legal Battle For BlackRock?

This marks a potential legal problem for BlackRock as the crypto mixer in question is currently under scrutiny.

In August 2022, the United States Treasury Department Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) sanctioned Tornado Cash for facilitating money laundering to the tune of $7 billion. Also, the crypto mixer was caught in the middle of an accusation that involved helping North Korea’s state-sponsored hacking group, Lazarus Group.

Alexey Pertsev, Tornado Cash founder was recently indicted by Dutch authorities for the role he played in the laundering of $1.2 billion using the crypto blender. Up to 36 listed cases were referenced in Pertsev’s case including the theft of 175 ETH from Axie Infinity-linked crypto protocol Ronin Bridge. Other illicit transactions on the Dutch prosecutors’ list involved decentralized protocols like Harmony and Nomad Bridge.

Due to the OFAC sanction, any U.S. person, including financial institutions, holding blocked property such as ETH from Tornado Cash is required to report their situation to the agency. This, therefore, puts BlackRock in a potential position for a legal battle, especially if it does not do the needed due diligence.