This issue discusses a variety of legal, regulatory and enforcement developments in the digital asset space in the U.S. and Europe....more
4/19/2021
/ Bitcoin ,
Blockchain ,
CFTC ,
Cryptocurrency ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Digital Assets ,
Distributed Ledger Technology (DLT) ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Ethereum ,
FinCEN ,
Initial Coin Offering (ICOs) ,
Investment Adviser ,
Non-Fungible Tokens (NFTs) ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Smart Contracts ,
Virtual Currency
On October 29, 2020, the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) Division of Enforcement (Division) issued a memorandum (Guidance) providing guidance for Division staff to follow when recommending the recognition of an...more
Recent and significant regulatory and legislative events in the digital asset space demonstrate the evolving and expanding approach by U.S. and international regulators to the burgeoning digital asset markets. These...more
10/31/2020
/ Banks ,
Blockchain ,
CFTC ,
Civil Monetary Penalty ,
Consent Order ,
Cryptocurrency ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Derivatives ,
Digital Assets ,
Distributed Ledger Technology (DLT) ,
Enforcement Actions ,
FinCEN ,
Global Market ,
Initial Coin Offering (ICOs) ,
Legislative Agendas ,
OCC ,
OECD ,
Offshore Listings ,
Regulatory Oversight ,
Restricted Transactions ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Securities Tokens ,
Smart Contracts ,
Stablecoins ,
Summary Judgment ,
Taxation ,
UK ,
Virtual Currency
In a memorandum dated May 20, 2020, the Commodity Futures Trading Commission’s (CFTC) Division of Enforcement issued guidance outlining factors that CFTC staff will consider when recommending civil monetary penalties (CMPs)...more
Despite political and economic uncertainties, markets and deal activity were resilient in 2019, and strong fundamentals remain in place heading into 2020. Companies continue to face a challenging litigation and enforcement...more
1/30/2020
/ Acquisitions ,
Administrative Procedure Act ,
Anti-Discrimination Policies ,
Anti-Harassment Policies ,
Anti-Kickback Statute ,
Antitrust Investigations ,
Appeals ,
Arbitration Awards ,
Attorney General ,
Backstop Agreements ,
BEPS ,
BitLicense ,
Blockchain ,
Board of Directors ,
Bonds ,
Capital Markets ,
CFIUS ,
CFTC ,
Chapter 11 ,
Claim Preclusion ,
Class Action ,
Commercial Bankruptcy ,
Common Stock ,
Congressional Investigations & Hearings ,
Congressional Subpoenas ,
Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) ,
Cooperation Agreement ,
Copyright ,
Corporate Governance ,
Corporate Restructuring ,
Corporate Social Responsibility ,
Corporate Taxes ,
Corwin Doctrine ,
Covenant Lite Deals ,
Creditors ,
Cross-Border Transactions ,
DACA ,
DE Supreme Court ,
Debt Financing ,
Debtors ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Dischargeable Debts ,
Disgorgement ,
Disparate Impact ,
Dodd-Frank ,
Down Rounds ,
Drug Pricing ,
EBITDA ,
Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employment Discrimination ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Enforcement of Foreign Judgments ,
Enterprise Act 2002 ,
Environmental Social & Governance (ESG) ,
EU ,
Fair Housing Act (FHA) ,
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) ,
FinTech ,
FIRRMA ,
Foreign Acquisitions ,
Foreign Investment ,
Foreign Issuers ,
FRCP 23 ,
General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) ,
General Elections ,
GILTI tax ,
High-Yield Markets ,
Hong Kong ,
Hong Kong Stock Exchange ,
Individual Accountability ,
Initial Public Offering (IPO) ,
Intellectual Property Litigation ,
Intercreditor Agreements ,
International Arbitration ,
International Litigation ,
IRS ,
Issue Preclusion ,
Japan ,
Joint Venture ,
Legislative Agendas ,
Life Sciences ,
Listing Rules ,
Litigation Strategies ,
Make-Whole Premium ,
Mergers ,
MFW ,
Multinationals ,
National Security ,
PCAOB ,
Pharmaceutical Industry ,
Political Parties ,
Preferred Shares ,
Private Offerings ,
Privately Held Corporations ,
Proxy Advisory Firms ,
Publicly-Traded Companies ,
Refinancing ,
Regulatory Agenda ,
Reporting Requirements ,
SCOTUS ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Securities Litigation ,
Separation of Powers ,
Shareholder Activism ,
Shareholder Proposals ,
Shareholders ,
Split of Authority ,
State Labor Laws ,
Stock Drop Litigation ,
Tax Cuts and Jobs Act ,
Tax Litigation ,
Technology Sector ,
Third-Party Release Agrements ,
Transparency ,
UK ,
UK Brexit ,
Valuation ,
White Collar Crimes
Over the past five years, the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) has settled 20 enforcement actions against financial institutions for violations of various Dodd-Frank Act regulatory requirements (i.e., rules other...more
1/23/2020
/ Amended Rules ,
Bipartisan Agreement ,
CFTC ,
Compliance ,
Cross-Border Transactions ,
Dodd-Frank ,
DSIO ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Exemptions ,
Financial Institutions ,
No-Action Letters ,
No-Action Relief ,
Over The Counter Derivatives (OTC) ,
Regulatory Burden ,
Regulatory Requirements ,
Swaps ,
Trump Administration
On March 6, 2019, the Commodity Futures Trading Commission’s (CFTC or Commission) Division of Enforcement (Division) published an advisory on self-reporting and cooperation for violations of the Commodity Exchange Act (CEA)...more
In 2018, the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC or Commission) began operating with a full complement of five commissioners for the first time since 2014. Soon thereafter, it held a rare open meeting to propose major...more
1/22/2019
/ CCPs ,
CFTC ,
Commodity Exchange Act (CEA) ,
Derivatives ,
Dodd-Frank ,
Enforcement Actions ,
EU ,
Extraterritoriality Rules ,
Jurisdiction ,
Legislative Agendas ,
Regulatory Agenda ,
Swap Execution Facilities ,
Swaps
On November 14, 2018, the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) Division of Enforcement released an annual report, apparently the first of its kind. In a speech given at New York University School of Law, James M....more
On October 2, 2018, in a speech to the Economic Club of Minnesota in Minneapolis, Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) Chairman J. Christopher Giancarlo forcefully emphasized the agency’s commitment to an active...more
Recent federal court decisions, and a pending appeal in the Ninth Circuit, highlight disagreement among the courts as to the scope of the Commodity Futures Trading Commission’s (CFTC) anti-fraud and anti-manipulation...more
10/2/2018
/ Administrative Authority ,
Anti-Fraud Provisions ,
Anti-Manipulation Rule ,
Appeals ,
CFTC ,
Commodities ,
Dodd-Frank ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Fraud ,
Rare Earth Metals ,
Split of Authority ,
Swaps ,
Unfair or Deceptive Trade Practices ,
Use in Commerce ,
Virtual Currency
On March 6, 2018, Judge Jack B. Weinstein of the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of New York ruled that virtual currencies are commodities under the Commodity Exchange Act (CEA) and therefore subject to the...more
3/8/2018
/ Administrative Authority ,
CFTC ,
Commodities ,
Commodity Exchange Act (CEA) ,
Derivatives ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Fraud ,
Jurisdiction ,
Market Manipulation ,
Preliminary Injunctions ,
Standing ,
Trial Court Orders ,
Virtual Currency
On January 29, 2018, the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) announced the filing of eight anti-spoofing enforcement actions: three settlements with financial institutions and five complaints filed in federal district...more
2/6/2018
/ Aiding and Abetting ,
Buyers ,
CFTC ,
Commodities ,
Commodity Exchange Act (CEA) ,
Constitutional Challenges ,
Criminal Prosecution ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Dodd-Frank ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Extradition ,
Financial Institutions ,
Futures ,
Petition for Writ of Certiorari ,
Sellers ,
Settlement ,
Spoofing ,
Swap Execution Facilities ,
Swaps ,
Vagueness
Upon discovering a potential violation, a company is often faced with the dilemma of whether to self-report the incident to its regulator or attempt to deal with the incident through exclusively internal means. On September...more
On August 7, 2017, the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC or Commission) announced a settlement for a civil penalty of $600,000 with the Bank of Tokyo Mitsubishi UFJ, Ltd. (BTMU) for alleged spoofing violations, with...more
8/16/2017
/ Appeals ,
CFTC ,
Civil Monetary Penalty ,
Commodities Traders ,
Commodity Exchange Act (CEA) ,
Constitutional Challenges ,
Criminal Prosecution ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Japan ,
Settlement Agreements ,
Spoofing ,
Vagueness
The U.S. District Court in the Southern District of New York recently dismissed a class action lawsuit alleging that Total, S.A., Total Gas & Power North America, Inc., and Total Gas & Power Limited (collectively, “Total”)...more
4/19/2017
/ Actual Injuries ,
CFTC ,
Civil Monetary Penalty ,
Class Action ,
Commodity Exchange Act (CEA) ,
Disgorgement ,
Dismissals ,
Enforcement Actions ,
FERC ,
Fraud ,
Market Manipulation ,
Monopolization ,
Natural Gas ,
Oil Prices ,
Pleading Standards ,
Price Manipulation ,
Private Right of Action ,
Sherman Act ,
Standing