E-Gold Claims US Officials Buried Key Report in 2008 Landmark Crypto Ruling

A defunct digital currency project that was a precursor to bitcoin has claimed the U.S. government suppressed crucial evidence in a 2008 landmark case that has since shaped the cryptocurrency industry.

E-Gold's former directors filed a petition Tuesday for a writ of coram nobis – in which the court changes the original judgment upon discovery of a fundamental error – at the District of Columbia court.
Founded in 1996, E-Gold allowed users to trade digital units backed by precious metals. At its peak, the company held around $85 million in gold.
The U.S. government charged E-Gold with being an unlicensed money transmitter in 2007 and the project's directors pleaded guilty in 2008.
The ex-directors now claim in court the federal government unlawfully concealed a 2006 review from Florida's Office for Financial Regulation (OFR) so it "could make an example" of E-Gold.
Per the filing, the OFR review said E-Gold did not count as a money transmitter because the gold-based asset was closer to a commodity than a fiat currency under state law.
E-Gold's former directors claim the court's judgment would have been substantially different had they been allowed access to the OFR review
The E-Gold case effectively extended the definition of "money transmitter" in the U.S. to include any system that stored and transferred value.
Many crypto businesses subsequently have had to be regulated as money transmitters in individual states if they want to operate legally in the U.S.

See the full filing below:

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