The Commodity Futures Trading Commission ("CFTC") recently proposed new and modified conflicts of interest, fitness, and governance regulations for swap execution facilities ("SEFs") and designated contract markets ("DCMs")....more
3/11/2024
/ CFTC ,
Commodity Futures Modernization Act of 2000 (CFMA) ,
Corporate Governance ,
Derivatives ,
Designated Contract Markets (DCMs) ,
Dodd-Frank ,
Financial Markets ,
Proposed Rules ,
Regulatory Requirements ,
Swap Execution Facilities ,
Swaps
The Securities and Exchange Commission (the "SEC" or "Commission") has adopted new rules that further define the phrase "part of a regular business" for purposes of determining whether a person is a "dealer" or "government...more
2/28/2024
/ Dealers ,
Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) ,
Investment Adviser ,
New Rules ,
Registration Requirement ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Securities Dealers ,
Securities Exchange Act ,
Securities Exchange Act of 1934 ,
Securities Regulation ,
Securities Traders ,
Securities Transactions
In Short -
The Situation:Â In a December 13, 2023, Open Meeting, the Commodity Futures Trading Commission proposed amendments to the Commission's regulations concerning clearing member funds held by a derivatives clearing...more
The Commodity Futures Trading Commission ("CFTC") has proposed swap reporting and recordkeeping amendments that would: designate a unique product identifier ("UPI") and product classification system ("PCS") for the "other...more
The Situation: The Securities and Exchange Commission ("SEC") has reopened the comment period for its proposed rule requiring public disclosure of security-based swap ("SBS") positions that exceed certain thresholds....more
8/23/2023
/ Administrative Procedure Act ,
Comment Period ,
Disclosure Requirements ,
Legal Entity Identifiers ,
Proposed Rules ,
Regulatory Agenda ,
Regulatory Reform ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Securities Regulation ,
Security-Based Swaps ,
Swaps ,
Third-Party
In Short -
The Situation: Recently, two judges in Southern District of New York were required to apply the Howey test in separate cases to decide whether sales of certain crypto assets were investment contracts, and thus...more
8/22/2023
/ Administrative Procedure Act ,
Cryptoassets ,
Cryptocurrency ,
Digital Assets ,
Due Process ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Howey ,
Investment Contract ,
Investment Opportunities ,
Popular ,
Ripple ,
Securities Act of 1933 ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Securities Regulation ,
Stablecoins
In Short -
The Situation: In parallel federal actions, the Department of Justice ("DOJ"), Securities and Exchange Commission ("SEC"), Commodity Futures Trading Commission ("CFTC"), and Federal Trade Commission ("FTC")...more
7/24/2023
/ CFTC ,
Cryptoassets ,
Cryptocurrency ,
Decentralized Finance (DeFi) ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Digital Assets ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) ,
FTC Act ,
Market Manipulation ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Securities Fraud
This advisory is the latest Commodity Futures Trading Commission ("Commission" or "CFTC") staff action conveying a Commission or staff view that CFTC registrants conducting business in nontraditional ways may need to register...more
In Short -
The Situation: The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission ("SEC" or "Commission") has reopened the comment period for its January 2022 proposal to amend Exchange Act Rule 3b-16 to broadly expand the...more
In Short -
The Situation: For the first time, the Economic Report of the President (the "Report") includes a chapter on digital assets....more
4/5/2023
/ Blockchain ,
Central Bank Digital Currency (CBDCs) ,
CFTC ,
Crypto Exchanges ,
Cryptoassets ,
Cryptocurrency ,
Digital Assets ,
FedNow ,
Financial Markets ,
Popular ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC)
In Short -
The Situation: Congress recently amended the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 (the "Exchange Act") to exempt certain "M&A brokers" from registration as broker-dealers with the U.S. Securities and Exchange...more
California's new Digital Financial Asset Law ("DFAL") will impose a variety of regulatory requirements on digital asset companies and cryptocurrency exchanges. Governor Newsom is expected to sign the DFAL into law, and new...more
In "Digital Assets Defined: How Lummis-Gillibrand Will Shape the Coming Fintech Debate," we provided a high-level overview of the Responsible Financial Innovation Act (the "Bill") and examined some of its significant...more
In Short -
The Situation: In a federal district court complaint against Archegos Capital Management, LP ("Archegos"), the Commodity Futures Trading Commission ("CFTC") has asserted jurisdiction over what many view as...more
The SEC's Proposal -
On March 28, 2022, the SEC released a rulemaking proposal (the "Proposal") for new rules to clarify the meaning of certain terms in the statutory definitions of "dealer" and "government securities...more
4/5/2022
/ Proposed Rules ,
Registration Statement ,
Regulatory Agenda ,
Regulatory Reform ,
Regulatory Standards ,
Rulemaking Process ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Securities Dealers ,
Securities Exchange Act ,
Securities Regulation ,
Securities Traders
The SEC's Proposal -
On January 26, 2022, the SEC released a rulemaking proposal that, among other things, would expand the definition of "exchange" under Rule 3b-16 of the Exchange Act. ...more
The SEC is considering new rules that would require public position reporting and other requirements for security-based swaps.
On December 15, 2021, the SEC proposed three rules under the Securities Exchange Act to...more
12/22/2021
/ Capital Markets ,
Disclosure Requirements ,
Equity Securities ,
MSBSPs ,
Proposed Rules ,
Regulatory Agenda ,
Regulatory Reform ,
Rule 10b-5 ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Securities Regulation ,
Security-Based Swaps ,
Swaps
Unless otherwise exempted, entities engaging in SBS dealing activity in the immediately preceding 12 months, as of the Counting Date and thereafter, must register as an SBS dealer if the SBS positions connected with its SBS...more
The Situation: The SEC has brought another in a growing list of whistleblower cases critical of entities for potentially attempting to impede an individual from communicating with the agency. In July 2010, the Dodd-Frank Wall...more
More than a year ago the world fell victim to a global pandemic that would change life in ways that could never have been predicted. In the early stages of the pandemic, we published a White Paper directed at financial...more
The Situation: The Securities and Exchange Commission’s Division of Examinations ("EXAMS") released a Risk Alert on March 29, 2021, reminding broker-dealers of their obligation to comply with anti-money laundering ("AML")...more
The Situation: The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission's ("SEC") Division of Examinations (the "Division") issued its 2021 examination priorities ("2021 Exam Priorities").
The Result: The 2021 Exam Priorities set...more
3/19/2021
/ Anti-Money Laundering ,
Broker-Dealer ,
Compliance ,
Investment Adviser ,
Municipal Advisers ,
OCIE ,
Regulation Best Interest ,
Regulation SCI ,
Retail Investors ,
SEC Examination Priorities ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC)
The Situation: President Joe Biden nominated Gary Gensler, former Chairman of the Commodity Futures Trading Commission ("CFTC") under the Obama administration, for Chairman of the Securities and Exchange Commission ("SEC"). ...more
On February 26, 2021, the SEC's Division of Examinations released a Risk Alert to make digital asset market participants aware of recurring issues that have arisen in the course of recent examinations, and provide notice of...more
On February 24, 2021, Securities and Exchange Commission ("SEC") Acting Chair Allison Herren Lee issued a Statement on the Review of Climate-Related Disclosure in which she directed the SEC's Division of Corporation Finance...more