The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (“CFPB”) published a report on Banking in Video Games and Virtual Worlds (“Report”) that warns of greater scrutiny of and enforcements against the financial services offered in games...more
The U.S. Copyright Office (“Office”) has published guidance on its policy and practices for examining and registering works that contain material generated by the use of artificial intelligence technology...more
Despite the minimal regulatory enforcement actions against blockchain game companies and NFT issuers, now is NOT the time to become complacent about regulatory issues. As indicated below, many U.S. agencies are increasing...more
1/17/2023
/ Blockchain ,
Celebrity Endorsements ,
Consumer Protection Laws ,
Cryptocurrency ,
Digital Currency ,
Insider Trading ,
Intellectual Property Protection ,
Money Laundering ,
Non-Fungible Tokens (NFTs) ,
Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) ,
Regulatory Agenda ,
Sanctions ,
Securities ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Taxation
We have previously posted about the SEC lawsuit against LBRY. In that post, we noted that while the crypto community is rightfully focused on the Ripple case to see how the SEC will fare in court on enforcements alleging...more
The rising prevalence of crypto and virtual currencies has invited the scrutiny of several regulatory bodies who continue to grapple with the unique challenges posed by blockchain technology, FinCEN being one prime example....more
10/4/2022
/ Bank Secrecy Act ,
Blockchain ,
California ,
Cryptocurrency ,
Financial Crimes ,
Financial Regulatory Agencies ,
FinCEN ,
In-Game Purchases ,
Money Laundering ,
Money Transmission Act ,
Non-Fungible Tokens (NFTs) ,
Popular ,
Software Developers ,
Virtual Currency
U.S. state and federal lawmakers, as well as federal regulators, are increasingly focusing on the role of blockchain and distributed ledger technology (“DLT”) in ongoing efforts to combat climate change and to facilitate the...more
It is well known that insider trading—the practice of buying and selling stocks, bonds, or other securities based on material, non-public information—is unlawful. For that reason, many companies have compliance programs and...more
The National Football League has announced a partnership with Mythical Games to create a blockchain video game called NFL Rivals. The game will use unique, generative 3D NFL franchise-themed NFTs and let players act as a...more
While the crypto community is rightfully focused on the Ripple case to see how the SEC will fare in court on enforcements alleging cryptocurrency offerings are a security, a lesser-known case may provide clarity first. The...more
6/1/2022
/ Blockchain ,
Cryptocurrency ,
Digital Assets ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Initial Coin Offering (ICOs) ,
Investment ,
Investors ,
Motion for Judgment ,
Motion To Intervene ,
Securities ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Summary Judgment ,
Token Sales ,
Unregistered Securities
The rise of blockchain, metaverse and Web3 technologies has lead to rapid adoption across all sectors of the economy. The government sector is no exception. Perhaps one of the most compelling examples is the recent...more
In an apparent follow up to President Biden’s March Executive Order on Digital Assets (which we previously discussed here), this week, California Governor Gavin Newsom signed a similar executive order aiming to foster...more
5/6/2022
/ Blockchain ,
California ,
Cryptocurrency ,
Digital Assets ,
Executive Orders ,
Governor Newsom ,
Joe Biden ,
New Legislation ,
Regulatory Agenda ,
State Legislatures ,
Technology ,
Transparency
“NFT” was 2021’s word of the year. This isn’t too surprising—they’re everywhere! The market cap for NFT transactions jumped from roughly $400 million at the beginning of 2021 to over $7 billion by year’s end. What’s next...more
As the world economy increasingly goes digital, innovators and existing market participants are finding new ways to tokenize assets and expand upon their uses, particularly with non-fungible tokens (NFTs). NFTs have commonly...more
For the past decade the crypto space has been described as the wild west. The crypto cowboys and cowgirls have innovated and moved the industry forward, despite some regulatory uncertainty. Innovation always leads regulatory...more
For some time now we have cautioned companies to seek legal advice for certain business models relating to NFTs. According to a recent report, the SEC is now targeting certain NFT uses. According to the report, the SEC is...more
As frequently as you heard “NFTs” in 2021, you will hear “metaverse” in 2022. The common denominator with these topics is that both heavily leverage blockchain technology. The other common denominator is that both NFTs and...more
Blockchain is one of the most significant new technologies since the internet. It has ushered in what has been referred to as Web3.0. Some of the most popular applications of this technology include NFTs and metaverses....more
2/28/2022
/ Blockchain ,
Corporate Governance ,
Cryptocurrency ,
FinCEN ,
Intellectual Property Protection ,
Money Laundering ,
Non-Fungible Tokens (NFTs) ,
Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) ,
Online Platforms ,
Regulatory Agenda ,
Regulatory Oversight ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Technology Sector
At least three different types of marketplaces facilitate the sale and/or resale of NFTs. These include open marketplaces, curated marketplaces and proprietary marketplaces. Other variations do exist, however, and it is...more
When the artist Beeple recently sold a digital work of art for $69 million, it caught the world’s attention especially because that one-of-a-kind digital art was a non-fungible token (NFT). In this episode, we’re taking a...more
As with other rapidly-evolving technologies, the blockchain space is experiencing a frenzy of patent activity. The data shows that there are 3-4 times as many published applications as there are issued patents for these...more
The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) published a report on Regulatory Approaches to the Tokenisation of Assets (Jan. 2021). The report notes that: “Policy makers in different jurisdictions have...more
Blockchain technology and smart contracts continue to show their potential for disrupting the electric energy industry. Through the use of blockchain, electricity markets could become more decentralized, efficient,...more
As another example of crypto tokens going mainstream, team Barcelona sold 1.2 million euro worth of fan tokens in less than two hours. The 600,000 tokens were sold at a fixed price of 2 euro, and are tradeable on Socios.com...more
As part of a multi-faceted deal, Google will become a validator node for Theta’s Mainnet 2.0. As part of the deal, Google Cloud will become Theta’s preferred cloud provider. Theta also plans to further collaborate with...more
A recent report indicates the use of blockchain technology in the energy sector is continuing to grow. According to the report, the global market for this use of blockchain technology is anticipated to grow at a CAGR of 52.9%...more