Blockchain and International Intrigue

We thought this was a very interesting and somewhat under-the-radar story from the holiday weekend. 

An employee of the crypto firm Ethereum Foundation was arrested after returning from a blockchain conference in North Korea. Federal prosecutors accused Virgil Griffith of detailing how North Korea could use blockchain technology and cryptocurrencies to get around U.S. sanctions. U.S. laws prevent American citizens from providing goods or services to North Korea.

Meanwhile, Ethereum’s co-founder staunchly defended Griffith in a series of tweets, saying he was doing nothing more than delivering a speech about already publicly available, open-source software. 

It will be interesting to follow the progression of this case.