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: 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)
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 this latest White Paper on our Bill analysis, we underscore headline proposals in the Lummis-Gillibrand Responsible Financial Innovation Act (the “Bill”) regarding consumer protection standards (Title V) and cybersecurity...more
NFTs are verifiable cryptographic tokens, which can act as a form of digital receipt. NFTs can also be used to evidence the authenticity, ownership, and provenance of real-world tangible items, such as artwork and real...more
In two first-of-their-kind enforcement actions relating to NFTs, securities regulators in Texas and Alabama ordered a Cyprus-based online casino developer and its founders to cease and desist selling NFTs that allegedly were...more
NFTs are verifiable cryptographic tokens, which can act as a form of digital receipt. NFTs can also be used to evidence the authenticity, ownership, and provenance of real-world items, such as artwork and real property, or...more
4/21/2022
/ Blockchain ,
Copyright ,
Copyright Infringement ,
Corporate Counsel ,
Entertainment Industry ,
Financial Markets ,
Intellectual Property Protection ,
Investment Opportunities ,
Movies ,
Non-Fungible Tokens (NFTs) ,
Popular ,
Quentin Tarantino ,
Star Wars
Introduction -
Cryptocurrency, such as Bitcoin, is a decentralized and exclusively virtual currency that is secured through cryptography. Companies using or investing in cryptocurrency face various risks, such as market...more
The SEC's Enforcement Action Against Ripple -
In December 2020, the SEC commenced an enforcement action against Ripple and two of its senior executives alleging that the defendants violated Section 5 of the Securities Act of...more
3/23/2022
/ Aiding and Abetting ,
Digital Assets ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Fair-Notice Standard ,
Financial Services Industry ,
Investment ,
Motion to Dismiss ,
Motion To Strike ,
Popular ,
Section 5 ,
Securities Act of 1933 ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Securities Transactions ,
Securities Violations ,
Unregistered Securities
Jones Day's Chris Pace and Mark Rasmussen discuss the implications of the federal court's decision in United American Corp. v. Bitmain, Inc., which analyzed and ultimately rejected the first private party antitrust claim...more
Cryptocurrencies are quickly becoming part of the financial mainstream, with institutional and retail investors alike adding them to their portfolios in record numbers. State legislatures are trying to keep up with this...more
The Situation: On January 4, 2021, the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency ("OCC") issued an Interpretive Letter permitting national banks and federal savings associations ("Banks") to participate in independent node...more
1/19/2021
/ Banking Sector ,
Cryptoassets ,
Cryptocurrency ,
Digital Assets ,
Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) ,
Financial Services Industry ,
FinCEN ,
Interpretive Letters ,
OCC ,
Popular ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Stablecoins
The Situation: The requirement for a paper-based note for issuing securities under the German law has been an obstacle for the use of security tokens in Germany. With the release of a draft bill (the "Bill") permitting the...more
The Situation: While investigating a website for criminal activities, federal agents traced Bitcoin transactions and issued a subpoena to a virtual-currency exchange to identify customers of the site. Using that information,...more
8/12/2020
/ Bitcoin ,
Blockchain ,
Carpenter v US ,
Criminal Investigations ,
Cryptocurrency ,
Cyber Crimes ,
Fourth Amendment ,
Popular ,
Probable Cause ,
Search Warrant ,
Subpoenas ,
Virtual Currency
In the sixth in a series of 12 Jones Day Presents: Blockchain videos, partner Mark Rasmussen discusses smart contracts, which execute automatically upon the occurrence of an event, and describes the use of the technology in...more
Do you have questions about blockchain technology? Watch "What is Blockchain and How is it Used?," the first in a series of 12 short Jones Day Presents: Blockchain videos. In this program, Jones Day partner Mark Rasmussen...more
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
As the interest in blockchain technology grows, companies will be confronted with numerous decisions, challenges, and legal issues pertaining to its adoption. Relevant matters include the overall design and control of...more
9/6/2017
/ Australia ,
Blockchain ,
China ,
Cybersecurity ,
Distributed Ledger Technology (DLT) ,
Financial Institutions ,
Foreign Jurisdictions ,
France ,
Germany ,
Hong Kong ,
Japan ,
Patents ,
Popular ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Singapore ,
Smart Contracts ,
Supply Chain ,
UK