According to @jchervinsky, the new US Senate crypto market structure draft explicitly clarifies that noncustodial software developers are not criminal money transmitters under Section 1960, the federal criminal money-transmitting statute (source: Jake Chervinsky on X, Sep 9, 2025; source: 18 U.S.C. § 1960). He describes this clarification as the litmus test for market structure, highlighting a clear distinction between noncustodial software and custodial financial intermediaries in the draft (source: Jake Chervinsky on X, Sep 9, 2025). For traders, the key takeaway is the draft’s express carve-out for noncustodial developers from Section 1960 criminal money-transmitter status, clarifying legal risk parameters for DeFi infrastructure and wallet software as the bill advances (source: Jake Chervinsky on X, Sep 9, 2025; source: 18 U.S.C. § 1960).

According to @jchervinsky, the head of the DOJ's Criminal Division will speak at a crypto conference tomorrow and take questions from @amandatums, source: @jchervinsky. The session is highlighted as important for those tracking the Roman Storm case and the DOJ's use of Section 1960 to prosecute non-custodial software developers, source: @jchervinsky. The author urges stakeholders to tune in, underscoring the significance of enforcement themes that market participants follow, source: @jchervinsky.

According to @jchervinsky, the Samourai Wallet developers have reached a plea deal with the DOJ, providing some relief for the team. However, @jchervinsky highlights concerns over the DOJ's stance that non-custodial software developers are engaged in money transmission, which could have significant implications for other crypto projects and developers. Section 1960 is identified as a major risk to developer freedom, potentially impacting the broader cryptocurrency ecosystem and trading landscape by increasing legal uncertainties for non-custodial wallet providers and related DeFi protocols (source: @jchervinsky).