On April 10, 2025, the Securities and Exchange Commission’s (SEC’s) Division of Corporation Finance (the Staff) published a Statement on Offerings and Registrations of Securities in the Crypto Asset Markets (the Statement)....more
An executive order and related legislation centralizes Bitcoin and digital asset holdings across the federal government to optimize oversight and management of crypto as a US reserve asset.
On March 6, 2025, President...more
The Staff stated that most meme coins are not subject to federal securities laws or SEC fraud enforcement; who will oversee meme coins remains an open question.
On February 27, 2025, the Securities and Exchange...more
3/12/2025
/ CFTC ,
Consumer Protection Laws ,
Cryptoassets ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) ,
Investors ,
Non-Fungible Tokens (NFTs) ,
NYDFS ,
Regulatory Oversight ,
Retail Investors ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Securities Regulation ,
Token Sales
In its third action involving NFTs, the SEC targets a restaurant membership token tied to fundraising and promises of potential price appreciation for buyers....more
9/23/2024
/ Cease and Desist Orders ,
Corporate Counsel ,
Cryptoassets ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Howey ,
Investment Contract ,
Marketing ,
Membership Interest ,
Non-Fungible Tokens (NFTs) ,
Popular ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Settlement ,
Token Sales ,
Unregistered Securities
Recent Supreme Court administrative law rulings change the power dynamic between the executive and the judiciary in critical areas of statutory interpretation, enforcement, and immunity from legal challenge....more
7/15/2024
/ Administrative Authority ,
Administrative Procedure Act ,
Administrative Proceedings ,
Chevron Deference ,
Corner Post Inc v Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System ,
Cryptoassets ,
Cryptocurrency ,
FinTech ,
Government Agencies ,
Judicial Authority ,
Jury Trial ,
Loper Bright Enterprises v Raimondo ,
SCOTUS ,
SEC v Jarkesy ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Seventh Amendment ,
Statute of Limitations ,
Statutory Authority ,
Statutory Interpretation
The priorities highlight emerging and core risk areas for investment advisers, broker-dealers, and other entities, including cybersecurity and crypto assets.
On October 16, 2023, the Securities and Exchange Commission’s...more
11/3/2023
/ Broker-Dealer ,
Clearing Agencies ,
Compliance ,
Cryptoassets ,
Cybersecurity ,
FinTech ,
Investment Adviser ,
Investment Advisers Act of 1940 ,
Investment Companies ,
Market Participants ,
Marketing ,
Private Funds ,
SEC Examination Priorities ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC)
Licensees, exchanges, and other market participants should prepare to comply with the listing, disclosure, capital, and other requirements that the new law imposes.
On October 13, 2023, California Governor Gavin Newsom...more
11/1/2023
/ Administrative Authority ,
Best Execution ,
Crypto Exchanges ,
Cryptoassets ,
Cryptocurrency ,
Department of Financial Protection and Innovation (DFPI) ,
Digital Assets ,
Financial Services Industry ,
Governor Newsom ,
Listing Rules ,
Market Participants ,
New Legislation ,
Regulatory Requirements ,
Stablecoins
The proposed bill sets forth a comprehensive framework for the digital asset ecosystem by bridging regulatory gaps, promoting innovation, and protecting consumers.
On June 2, 2023, Patrick McHenry, Chairman of the House...more
6/30/2023
/ Advisory Committee ,
Anti-Fraud Provisions ,
Anti-Manipulation Rule ,
CFTC ,
Commodity Exchange Act (CEA) ,
Consumer Protection Laws ,
Cryptoassets ,
Cryptocurrency ,
Decentralized Finance (DeFi) ,
Digital Assets ,
Disclosure Requirements ,
Environmental Social & Governance (ESG) ,
Investment Contract ,
Non-Fungible Tokens (NFTs) ,
Proposed Legislation ,
Registration Requirement ,
Regulatory Authority ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Stablecoins
The CRPTO Act is intended to increase transparency and consumer protections, and reduce conflicts of interest, through heightened disclosures and penalties.
On May 5, 2023, New York Attorney General (NYAG) Letitia James...more
The bipartisan bill would provide a federal safe harbor for non-custodial blockchain service providers from state money transmission and digital asset licensing laws.
On March 23, 2023, US House of Representatives...more
3/31/2023
/ Bank Secrecy Act ,
BitLicense ,
Blockchain ,
Cryptoassets ,
Cryptocurrency ,
Custody ,
FATF ,
FinCEN ,
Market Participants ,
Preemption ,
Proposed Legislation
The Financial Services Committee seeks to bring order to an industry many say has suffered from lack of proper rulemaking.
On January 12, 2023, incoming House Financial Services Committee Chair Patrick McHenry...more
The amended definition could provide a new means for the SEC to regulate crypto platforms.
We previously published a blog post on the set of proposed amendments (Proposal) issued on January 26, 2022, by the Securities...more
Popular and institutional interest in digital assets, decentralized applications, NFTs, and blockchain technology skyrocketed, and regulators sprinted to catch up.
For the digital asset markets, 2021 was a banner year....more
1/25/2022
/ Bitcoin ,
Blockchain ,
Capital Raising ,
Cryptoassets ,
Cryptocurrency ,
Decentralized Finance (DeFi) ,
Digital Assets ,
Enforcement ,
Entrepreneurs ,
Environmental Social & Governance (ESG) ,
Federal Reserve ,
Financial Regulatory Agencies ,
FinCEN ,
Non-Fungible Tokens (NFTs) ,
Regulatory Agenda ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Startups ,
Unicorns ,
Venture Capital
An ambitious proposal could bring digital assets into the mainstream regulatory fold. During an eventful summer for the digital assets industry, it may have been easy to miss US Representative Don Beyer’s introduction of the...more
9/13/2021
/ Anti-Money Laundering ,
Bank Secrecy Act ,
Central Bank Digital Currency (CBDCs) ,
CFTC ,
Commodities ,
Cryptoassets ,
Digital Assets ,
Enforcement Authority ,
FDIC ,
Federal Reserve ,
Proposed Legislation ,
Regulatory Oversight ,
Reporting Requirements ,
Securities ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Stablecoins ,
U.S. Treasury
US Department of Justice’s sprawling report reveals regulatory enforcement priorities for cryptocurrencies and highlights multi-agency cooperation.
On October 8, 2020, the US Attorney General’s Cyber-Digital Task Force of...more
10/20/2020
/ AML/CFT ,
Cryptoassets ,
Cryptocurrency ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Digital Assets ,
Enforcement ,
Financial Regulatory Agencies ,
Information Reports ,
Popular ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Strategic Enforcement Plan ,
Suspicious Activity Reports (SARs)
Crypto-asset trading is a fast-growing part of the financial sector. Some countries have wholeheartedly embraced crypto-assets; others have been reticent to permit widespread adoption. Generally, countries have interpreted...more
Recent SEC guidance on digital assets cleared a path for at least certain stable coins or payment tokens to avoid securities regulation. However, Latham & Watkins attorneys say there are still a number of open questions that...more
1/28/2020
/ Cryptoassets ,
Cryptocurrency ,
Digital Assets ,
FinTech ,
Howey ,
Market Participants ,
New Guidance ,
No-Action Letters ,
Regulatory Standards ,
Securities ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Token Sales