For the Web3 industry, this case completely rewrote the rules of the game.
Regulators have rolled out a new playbook:
🤍Founders are personally liable. Durov was charged because illegal transactions happened inside the app. The excuse "I just write the code" no longer works.
🤍Choking the gateways. You can’t block a blockchain, so regulators are squeezing fiat on/off-ramps. To keep these money channels alive, Telegram had to start sharing lawbreakers' IP addresses with authorities.
🤍The Capital Freeze. Banks won't risk compliance fines. If your Web3 project doesn't use KYT systems to track "dirty" crypto, they will automatically freeze your corporate accounts.
Lawless Web3 is over. Launching a project today without built-in transaction tracking means being cut off from real money almost instantly.
Will this regulation clean up the market or kill the spirit of crypto? Let's discuss!