Judge Unblocks $71M in ETH for Aave Transfer as North Korea Creditors Retain Legal Claim

According to The Block, on Friday, Judge Margaret Garnett of the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York partially unblocked 30,766 ETH (approximately $71 million) frozen inside Arbitrum DAO since May 1, allowing an on-chain governance vote to transfer the ether to a digital assets wallet controlled by Aave. The judge's order explicitly protects ARB holders and transaction participants from violating the restraining notice.

Arbitrum delegates voted to approve the release on Thursday, with 182.2 million ARB tokens supporting the measure and approximately 91% of voting power in favor. However, the funds remain subject to the restraining notice as served against Aave LLC; if the court ultimately sides with terrorism creditors claiming the ETH as North Korean property, Aave could be compelled to surrender the assets.