SEC Chairman Gary Gensler suggests SEC will aggressively police crypto assets and decentralized finance ("DeFi") platforms while seeking expanded authority to regulate these fast-growing industries....more
8/10/2021
/ Cryptoassets ,
Cryptocurrency ,
Decentralized Finance (DeFi) ,
Digital Assets ,
Gary Gensler ,
Initial Coin Offering (ICOs) ,
Policy Statement ,
Regulatory Agenda ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Token Sales ,
Unregistered Securities
The Situation: The Financial Crimes Enforcement Network ("FinCEN") released interpretive guidance concerning the application of the Bank Secrecy Act ("BSA") and the anti-money laundering ("AML") regulations to certain...more
6/21/2019
/ Anti-Money Laundering ,
Bank Secrecy Act ,
Blockchain ,
Civil Monetary Penalty ,
Convertible Virtual Currencies (CVCs) ,
Distributed Ledger Technology (DLT) ,
Enforcement Actions ,
FinCEN ,
Initial Coin Offering (ICOs) ,
Money Services Business ,
p2p ,
Peer-to-Peer ,
Regulatory Requirements ,
Suspicious Activity Reports (SARs) ,
Virtual Currency
The Situation: Federal prosecutors have asserted that two cryptocurrencies sold in initial coin offerings ("ICOs") are "securities" for purposes of federal securities laws in a criminal indictment alleging fraud against the...more
9/24/2018
/ Criminal Prosecution ,
Cryptocurrency ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Howey ,
Indictments ,
Initial Coin Offering (ICOs) ,
Investment Contract ,
Material Misrepresentation ,
Real Estate Investments ,
Securities Act of 1933 ,
Securities Exchange Act ,
Securities Fraud ,
Subject Matter Jurisdiction ,
Token Sales
The Situation: The Director of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission's Division of Corporate Finance, William Hinman, has weighed in on when digital assets will be characterized as securities.
The Result: In...more
6/26/2018
/ Bitcoin ,
Cryptocurrency ,
Digital Assets ,
Ether ,
Goods or Services ,
Howey ,
Initial Coin Offering (ICOs) ,
Investment Adviser ,
Securities Act of 1933 ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Token Sales
The surge in cryptocurrency activity has led to an increase in attention from enforcement authorities at both the state and national levels. The Texas State Securities Board launched an investigation into cryptocurrency...more
5/15/2018
/ Bitcoin ,
Broker-Dealer ,
Cease and Desist Orders ,
Cryptocurrency ,
Digital Currency ,
Disclosure Requirements ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Foreign Securities ,
Initial Coin Offering (ICOs) ,
Registration Requirement ,
Securities Violations ,
State Securities Regulators ,
Token Sales ,
Unregistered Securities
The Situation: The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission has launched a special unit to bring enforcement actions against several forms of cyber misconduct.
The Result: The Cyber Unit has already brought enforcement...more
12/20/2017
/ Blockchain ,
Digital Currency ,
Distributed Ledger Technology (DLT) ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Ethereum ,
Initial Coin Offering (ICOs) ,
Popular ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Securities Violations ,
Token Sales ,
Unregistered Securities ,
Virtual Currency
As interest continues to grow in virtual currencies, blockchain technology and initial coin offerings, governments are evaluating the benefits and potential risks of these innovations, while considering numerous regulatory...more
11/6/2017
/ Bitcoin ,
Crowdfunding ,
Cryptocurrency ,
Digital Currency ,
Ethereum ,
Financial Adviser ,
Financial Markets ,
Initial Coin Offering (ICOs) ,
Investors ,
Monetary Authority of Singapore ,
Popular ,
Profit Sharing ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Securities and Futures Act (SFA) ,
Singapore ,
Token Sales
The Situation: Promoters of two recent initial coin offerings face charges of investor fraud brought by the SEC, after allegedly misrepresenting the assets purportedly backing the offerings, exaggerating the amount of funds...more
10/11/2017
/ Asset Freeze ,
Digital Currency ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Initial Coin Offering (ICOs) ,
Investment Fraud ,
Investors ,
Misrepresentation ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Securities Fraud ,
Token Sales ,
Unregistered Securities ,
Virtual Currency