The Senate has yet to take action on the 21st Century Act (FIT21) (H.R.4763) which passed the House by a comfortable margin of 279-136 on May 22, 2024. FIT21 is a proposed landmark piece of legislation that would enact a...more
9/13/2024
/ Bitcoin ,
CFTC ,
Cryptocurrency ,
Digital Assets ,
Fraud ,
Investment Fraud ,
Non-Fungible Tokens (NFTs) ,
Proposed Legislation ,
Proposed Regulation ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
South Korea ,
Unfair Trade Practices Act ,
United Arab Emirates (UAE) ,
Whistleblowers
CryptoLink is a compilation of news stories published by outside organizations. Akin aggregates the stories, but the information contained in them does not necessarily represent the beliefs or opinions of the firm. Akin's...more
8/16/2024
/ Bitcoin ,
Bitcoin Mining ,
CFTC ,
Criminal Conspiracy ,
Cryptocurrency ,
Digital Assets ,
Disgorgement ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) ,
Fraud ,
Individual Retirement Account (IRA) ,
Penalties ,
Proposed Legislation ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Settlement ,
UK
CryptoLink is a compilation of news stories published by outside organizations. Akin aggregates the stories, but the information contained in them does not necessarily represent the beliefs or opinions of the firm. Akin's...more
7/25/2024
/ Central Bank Digital Currency (CBDCs) ,
Cryptoassets ,
Cryptocurrency ,
Digital Assets ,
Enforcement ,
FDIC ,
Fraud ,
Investment ,
IRS ,
Jurisdiction ,
New Legislation ,
Non-Fungible Tokens (NFTs) ,
Reporting Requirements ,
Risk Assessment ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
U.S. Treasury
CryptoLink is a compilation of news stories published by outside organizations. Akin aggregates the stories, but the information contained in them does not necessarily represent the beliefs or opinions of the firm. Akin's May...more
6/13/2024
/ Bank Secrecy Act ,
Blockchain ,
Central Bank Digital Currency (CBDCs) ,
CFTC ,
Crypto Exchanges ,
Cryptocurrency ,
Digital Assets ,
Enforcement ,
Ethereum ,
Money Laundering ,
Proposed Legislation ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Wells Notice ,
Wire Fraud
The big news in crypto policy came out of the Senate this month. On April 17, Senators Cynthia Lummis (R-WY) and Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY) partnered once again in the digital asset space, this time introducing the...more
On April 3, 2024, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) announced its first enforcement action against a registered investment adviser (RIA) with no ties to a broker-dealer regarding so-called “off-channel”...more
4/10/2024
/ Broker-Dealer ,
Electronic Communications ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Fund Managers ,
Investigations ,
Investment Adviser ,
Investment Management ,
Recordkeeping Requirements ,
Registered Investment Advisors ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Securities Regulation ,
Securities Violations
In the House, lawmakers continue to make progress on the Clarity for Stablecoins Act (H.R. 4766). On March 19, at a press event hosted by Punchbowl News on the policy landscape for digital payments, outgoing House Financial...more
4/9/2024
/ Anti-Money Laundering ,
CFTC ,
Coinbase ,
Copyright Office ,
Cryptoassets ,
Cryptocurrency ,
DIFC ,
FDIC ,
Fines ,
Fraud ,
Ponzi Scheme ,
RICO ,
Sanctions ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Sentencing ,
Stablecoins ,
USPTO
Last month, the United Kingdom Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) announced that it is considering new procedures under which it would publicly identify firms that are under investigation as soon as the investigation has been...more
4/1/2024
/ Cross-Border ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Disclosure Requirements ,
Enforcement ,
Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) ,
FSMA ,
Investigations ,
Notice Requirements ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
UK ,
Willful Misconduct
CryptoLink is a compilation of news stories published by outside organizations. Akin aggregates the stories, but the information contained in them does not necessarily represent the beliefs or opinions of the firm. Akin's...more
3/20/2024
/ Banking Regulators ,
Bitcoin ,
CFTC ,
Cryptoassets ,
Cryptocurrency ,
Digital Assets ,
Digital Currency ,
Enforcement Actions ,
ETFs ,
Financial Services Industry ,
Fraud ,
Investors ,
Legislative Agendas ,
OECD ,
Proposed Legislation ,
Pyramid Schemes ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Securities Litigation ,
Stablecoins ,
Tokenization ,
Wire Fraud
Congress continues to plug along on crypto policy. The Senate’s attention – on a bipartisan basis – has been focused on extending Anti-Money Laundering (AML) regulatory authority to the digital assets space. This continues to...more
2/21/2024
/ AML/CFT ,
Bitcoin ,
CFTC ,
Chapter 11 ,
Coinbase ,
Cryptoassets ,
Cryptocurrency ,
European Banking Authority (EBA) ,
Exchange-Traded Products ,
Non-Fungible Tokens (NFTs) ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Securities Fraud
Key Points - Last week, the SEC announced settlements with 16 broker-dealers, dually registered broker-dealers and investment advisers, and affiliated investment advisers in connection with their failures to maintain and...more
On the one hand, the year ended where it began. The legislation on stabelecoins and market structure that would provide a regulatory framework for digital assets has still not been enacted into law. And Securities and...more
1/19/2024
/ Anti-Money Laundering ,
Bitcoin ,
CFTC ,
Class Action ,
Coinbase ,
Cryptoassets ,
Cryptocurrency ,
Enforcement Actions ,
ETFs ,
Fraud ,
Money Transmitter ,
Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) ,
Ponzi Scheme ,
Rulemaking Process ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Securities Tokens ,
Summary Judgment ,
Terrorism Funding ,
U.S. Treasury ,
Virtual Currency
CryptoLink is a compilation of news stories published by outside organizations. Akin aggregates these stories, but the information contained in them does not necessarily represent the beliefs or opinions of the firm. Akin's...more
11/20/2023
/ CFTC ,
Coinbase ,
Cryptoassets ,
Digital Assets ,
Enforcement ,
FDIC ,
Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) ,
FinCEN ,
Fraud ,
Jury Selection ,
Licensing Rules ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
United Arab Emirates (UAE)
On October 24, 2023, the Director of the Securities and Exchange Commission’s Enforcement Division, Gurbir S. Grewal, gave a keynote address to the New York City Bar Association’s 2023 Compliance Institute.
This address,...more
CryptoLink is a compilation of news stories published by outside organizations. Akin aggregates these stories, but the information contained in them does not necessarily represent the beliefs or opinions of the firm. Akin's...more
10/10/2023
/ Bitcoin ,
Blockchain ,
CFTC ,
Cryptocurrency ,
Decentralized Finance (DeFi) ,
Digital Assets ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) ,
FinTech ,
Investment ,
IOSCO ,
Regulatory Reform ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC)
Key Point -
Just over two weeks after the SEC announced the settlement of its first NFT enforcement action against Impact Theory, on September 13, 2023, the SEC announced its second NFT enforcement action against SC2, the...more
CryptoLink is a compilation of news stories published by outside organizations. Akin aggregates these stories, but the information contained in them does not necessarily represent the beliefs or opinions of the firm. Akin's...more
9/13/2023
/ Anti-Money Laundering ,
CFTC ,
Coinbase ,
Cryptoassets ,
Cryptocurrency ,
Deposit Insurance ,
Digital Assets ,
Enforcement Actions ,
FDIC ,
Federal Reserve ,
Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) ,
Fraud ,
IRS ,
Misleading Statements ,
Non-Fungible Tokens (NFTs) ,
North Korea ,
Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Tax Evasion ,
U.S. Treasury
Key Points -
On August 28, 2023, the SEC charged Impact Theory, LLC, a media company with an unregistered securities offering through its sale of NFTs. This marks the first time that the SEC has brought an enforcement action...more
8/30/2023
/ Corporate Counsel ,
Enforcement ,
Ethereum ,
Investment Contract ,
Investors ,
Non-Fungible Tokens (NFTs) ,
Nonprofits ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Securities Litigation ,
Settlement ,
Unregistered Securities
Key Point -
Just shy of three weeks after Judge Torres held that the digital asset XRP is not itself a security,1 Judge Rakoff held that the SEC had adequately pled that certain digital assets, such as the UST and LUNA...more
Key Points -
A judge in the Southern District of New York recently held that (i) the crypto asset XRP is not, on its own, a security and, (ii) as a result, the determination of whether an offer or sale of XRP required SEC...more
Private funds should be prepared for increased oversight from the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), following a landmark year of enforcement cases. In 2021, the Commission brought 159 enforcement actions against...more
2/3/2022
/ Enforcement Actions ,
Fiduciary Duty ,
Form PF ,
Fund Managers ,
Investment Adviser ,
Investment Advisers Act of 1940 ,
Policies and Procedures ,
Private Equity ,
Private Funds ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Securities Violations
Key Points -
On December 7, 2021, the Delaware Supreme Court unanimously upheld the Court of Chancery’s decision in AB Stable VIII LLC v. MAPS Hotels and Resorts One LLC, finding that certain actions taken by the Seller...more
In AB Stable VIII LLC v. Maps Hotels and Resorts One LLC, the Delaware Court of Chancery issued a precedential decision addressing whether a buyer could walk away from an M&A transaction because the target company’s responses...more
- The 2nd Circuit has affirmed two lower court decisions dismissing complaints alleging violations of Section 16(b) of the Securities Exchange Act. In so holding, the 2nd Circuit ruled that an investment advisor’s client does...more
The recently announced dispute between BorgWarner Inc. and Delphi Technologies PLC relating to BorgWarner’s planned acquisition of Delphi may turn into one of the first cases of a contested mergers and acquisitions (M&A)...more