“Decentralization” is a concept that has consistently vexed the entire blockchain-enabled ecosystem in the U.S., including its counsel and regulators, wherein a lack of clarity on the exact definition of decentralization has...more
4/22/2021
/ Bitcoin ,
Blockchain ,
Cryptocurrency ,
Decentralized Finance (DeFi) ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) ,
Howey ,
Information Commissioner's Office (ICO) ,
Investment Contract ,
Popular ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC)
As part of the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency’s (OCC) declared effort to keep pace with a mounting demand for faster, cheaper, and more efficient payments, and the widespread adoption of new technologies, the...more
1/18/2021
/ Anti-Money Laundering ,
Banks ,
Blockchain ,
Comptroller ,
Cryptocurrency ,
Electronic Payment Transactions ,
Federal Savings Associations ,
Financial Institutions ,
Interpretive Letters ,
OCC ,
Popular ,
Stablecoins
So far in 2020, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has brought fifteen enforcement actions in the offerings of digital assets space. Three of these actions do not involve fraud; rather, they allege solely...more
9/24/2020
/ Blockchain ,
Digital Assets ,
Digital Currency ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Fraud ,
Online Gaming ,
Payment Tokens ,
Section 5 ,
Securities Act of 1933 ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Securities Fraud
On March 24, 2020, the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (“CFTC”) issued its final interpretive guidance (the “Interpretation”) concerning the meaning of “actual delivery” in the context of retail commodity transactions...more
Under the Bank Secrecy Act of 1970 (BSA), buoyed by the USA PATRIOT Act of 2001, the United States instituted a compliance regime where financial institutions are required to collaborate with the government in order to...more
The terms “revolution” and “disruption” in the context of technological innovation are probably bandied about a bit more liberally than they should. Technological revolution and disruption imply upheaval and systemic...more
Global M&A made another strong showing in 2019, as stock markets, while at times bumpy, rose to new highs, private equity firms raised record funds, and companies searched for growth and ways to address technological and...more
On July 10, 2019, Blockstack Token LLC (“Blockstack”), a wholly-owned subsidiary of Blockstack PBC, a Delaware public benefit corporation, became the first company to have an offering of digital assets qualified by the U.S....more
On May 28, 2019, a Nevada resident, Morgan Rockcoons, was sentenced in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of California to 21 months in prison for wire fraud and unlicensed money transmission. In connection...more
On April 30, 2019, Governor Hogan signed Senate Bill 136, which amends the Maryland General Corporation Law to permit certain corporate records (including a company’s stock ledger) to be maintained on electronic networks or...more
On April 3, 2019, the Strategic Hub for Innovation and Financial Technology (“FinHub”) of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) published two pieces of guidance on when a blockchain-enabled digital asset will,...more
Patients accumulate vast quantities of healthcare data over the course of their lives. Those data are generally housed in centralized servers operated by various unrelated industry participants, including government...more
Until November 8, 2018, the enforcement actions of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) in the digital token (aka cryptocurrency) space have primarily focused on the primary issuances of tokens. However, on...more
Many in the blockchain and cryptocurrency community were in a celebratory mood on June 14, 2018, following a landmark speech given by William Hinman, Director for the Division of Corporation Finance of the U.S. Securities and...more
In September 2015, the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) stated in a settlement order that “Bitcoin and other virtual currencies are encompassed in the definition and properly defined as commodities” under the...more
A brief discussion regarding the SEC’s guidance provided to ICO market participants over the past year.
On January 22, 2018, the Chairman of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), Jay Clayton, gave opening...more
For most of the 20th century, Eastman Kodak Co. (often referred to simply as Kodak) was one of the most recognizable brands in the world. Founded in 1888, Kodak dominated the film and camera markets — in 1976, Kodak had 90...more
On July 21, 2017, following last June’s announcement that the Delaware House of Representatives had passed (with near unanimity) blockchain-related provisions proposing to amend several sections of the Delaware General...more
On July 21, 2017, following last June’s announcement that the Delaware House of Representatives had passed (with near unanimity) blockchain-related provisions proposing to amend several sections of the Delaware General...more
Following last May’s announcement of the “Delaware Blockchain Initiative” by former Delaware Governor Jack Markell, on March 13, 2017, the Corporate Council of the Corporation Law Section of the Delaware State Bar Association...more
The World Economic Forum threw a knockout punch this month when it released its report “The Future of Infrastructure: An Ambitious Look at How Blockchain Can Reshape Financial Services.”1 When Giancarlo Bruno, the World...more
It’s official – Blockchain is ready for its close-up. Blockchain and smart contracts have moved out of the wings and are the new stars of the finance industry, according to the World Economic Forum’s report released on...more