After years of regulatory uncertainty, the Trump administration has signaled a new approach to digital assets, including by establishing a working group focused on digital assets and nominating crypto-friendly chairs to the...more
5/6/2025
/ Artificial Intelligence ,
Blockchain ,
CFTC ,
Cryptocurrency ,
Cybersecurity ,
Data Privacy ,
Digital Assets ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Enforcement Priorities ,
FinTech ,
NYDFS ,
Popular ,
Regulatory Agenda ,
Regulatory Requirements ,
Risk Management ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
State Attorneys General ,
Technology
President Trump has taken the first steps toward fulfilling his promise to reverse the Biden administration’s approach to digital assets by issuing an executive order that establishes a framework for fostering the growth of...more
2/10/2025
/ Biden Administration ,
Blockchain ,
CFTC ,
Cryptocurrency ,
Digital Assets ,
Digital Currency ,
Executive Orders ,
Financial Services Industry ,
FinTech ,
Popular ,
Regulatory Agenda ,
Regulatory Reform ,
Revocation ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Stablecoins ,
Technology Sector ,
Trump Administration
On September 7, 2023, the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) issued three enforcement settlement orders against developers of decentralized finance (DeFi) protocols. The orders charge Opyn, Inc., Deridex, Inc., and...more
A March 27, 2023, decision by a California federal court in a putative class action, Sarcuni v. bZx DAO, has brought into focus how courts might construe the legal existence of decentralized autonomous organizations (DAOs)....more
On September 22, 2022, the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC or Commission) (1) issued an order settling charges against protocol creator bZeroX, LLC and its founders, and (2) filed a federal civil enforcement action...more
A flurry of legal and enforcement activity has arisen over the last two weeks across a wide range of areas in the Web3 space, including actions by the Securities and Exchange Commission, the Office of Foreign Assets Control,...more
8/25/2022
/ Bitcoin ,
Blockchain ,
CFTC ,
Cryptocurrency ,
Digital Assets ,
Digital Currency ,
Distributed Ledger Technology (DLT) ,
FDIC ,
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) ,
Financial Markets ,
FinTech ,
OCC ,
Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) ,
Popular ,
Regulatory Oversight ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Smart Contracts ,
Virtual Currency
On July 21, 2022, the Department of Justice (DOJ) and the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) each brought insider trading charges against a former Coinbase product manager, his brother and a close friend for using...more
7/27/2022
/ CFTC ,
Coinbase ,
Confidential Information ,
Cryptoassets ,
Cryptocurrency ,
Digital Assets ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Insider Trading ,
Material Nonpublic Information ,
Non-Fungible Tokens (NFTs) ,
Popular ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC)
In recent years, innovation in the blockchain or “Web3” space has been impacted by uncertainty on the regulatory front. Undoubtedly, the greatest area of uncertainty has involved the Securities Exchange Commission (SEC) and...more
In recent months, the increased focus on cryptocurrency regulation and enforcement at both the federal and state levels demonstrates the digital currency’s place as an established component of the financial landscape. At the...more
10/1/2021
/ Anti-Money Laundering ,
Bank Secrecy Act ,
BitMEX ,
Blockchain ,
CFTC ,
Cryptocurrency ,
Decentralized Finance (DeFi) ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Digital Assets ,
Digital Currency ,
FinCEN ,
Homeland Security Cybersecurity & Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) ,
IRS ,
Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) ,
Ransomware ,
Reporting Requirements ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC)
This issue discusses a variety of legal, regulatory and enforcement developments in the digital asset space in the U.S. and Europe, including expanded reporting requirements for broadly defined cryptocurrency “brokers,” a...more
8/27/2021
/ Anti-Money Laundering ,
Bank Secrecy Act ,
BitMEX ,
Blockchain ,
CFTC ,
Cryptocurrency ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Digital Assets ,
Distributed Ledger Technology (DLT) ,
Enforcement Actions ,
FinCEN ,
Popular ,
Reporting Requirements ,
Smart Contracts
This issue discusses a variety of legal, regulatory and enforcement developments in the digital asset space in the U.S. and Europe....more
4/19/2021
/ Bitcoin ,
Blockchain ,
CFTC ,
Cryptocurrency ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Digital Assets ,
Distributed Ledger Technology (DLT) ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Ethereum ,
FinCEN ,
Initial Coin Offering (ICOs) ,
Investment Adviser ,
Non-Fungible Tokens (NFTs) ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Smart Contracts ,
Virtual Currency
Recent and significant regulatory and legislative events in the digital asset space demonstrate the evolving and expanding approach by U.S. and international regulators to the burgeoning digital asset markets. These...more
10/31/2020
/ Banks ,
Blockchain ,
CFTC ,
Civil Monetary Penalty ,
Consent Order ,
Cryptocurrency ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Derivatives ,
Digital Assets ,
Distributed Ledger Technology (DLT) ,
Enforcement Actions ,
FinCEN ,
Global Market ,
Initial Coin Offering (ICOs) ,
Legislative Agendas ,
OCC ,
OECD ,
Offshore Listings ,
Regulatory Oversight ,
Restricted Transactions ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Securities Tokens ,
Smart Contracts ,
Stablecoins ,
Summary Judgment ,
Taxation ,
UK ,
Virtual Currency
On March 24, 2020, the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC or Commission) voted unanimously to adopt an interpretation of the term “actual delivery” with respect to retail virtual currency transactions (2020 Guidance)....more
4/8/2020
/ Actual Delivery ,
Amended Rules ,
CFTC ,
Commodities ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Enforcement ,
Futures ,
Leveraged Lending ,
Margin Requirements ,
Retail Investors ,
Swaps ,
Virtual Currency
Despite political and economic uncertainties, markets and deal activity were resilient in 2019, and strong fundamentals remain in place heading into 2020. Companies continue to face a challenging litigation and enforcement...more
1/30/2020
/ Acquisitions ,
Administrative Procedure Act ,
Anti-Discrimination Policies ,
Anti-Harassment Policies ,
Anti-Kickback Statute ,
Antitrust Investigations ,
Appeals ,
Arbitration Awards ,
Attorney General ,
Backstop Agreements ,
BEPS ,
BitLicense ,
Blockchain ,
Board of Directors ,
Bonds ,
Capital Markets ,
CFIUS ,
CFTC ,
Chapter 11 ,
Claim Preclusion ,
Class Action ,
Commercial Bankruptcy ,
Common Stock ,
Congressional Investigations & Hearings ,
Congressional Subpoenas ,
Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) ,
Cooperation Agreement ,
Copyright ,
Corporate Governance ,
Corporate Restructuring ,
Corporate Social Responsibility ,
Corporate Taxes ,
Corwin Doctrine ,
Covenant Lite Deals ,
Creditors ,
Cross-Border Transactions ,
DACA ,
DE Supreme Court ,
Debt Financing ,
Debtors ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Dischargeable Debts ,
Disgorgement ,
Disparate Impact ,
Dodd-Frank ,
Down Rounds ,
Drug Pricing ,
EBITDA ,
Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employment Discrimination ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Enforcement of Foreign Judgments ,
Enterprise Act 2002 ,
Environmental Social & Governance (ESG) ,
EU ,
Fair Housing Act (FHA) ,
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) ,
FinTech ,
FIRRMA ,
Foreign Acquisitions ,
Foreign Investment ,
Foreign Issuers ,
FRCP 23 ,
General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) ,
General Elections ,
GILTI tax ,
High-Yield Markets ,
Hong Kong ,
Hong Kong Stock Exchange ,
Individual Accountability ,
Initial Public Offering (IPO) ,
Intellectual Property Litigation ,
Intercreditor Agreements ,
International Arbitration ,
International Litigation ,
IRS ,
Issue Preclusion ,
Japan ,
Joint Venture ,
Legislative Agendas ,
Life Sciences ,
Listing Rules ,
Litigation Strategies ,
Make-Whole Premium ,
Mergers ,
MFW ,
Multinationals ,
National Security ,
PCAOB ,
Pharmaceutical Industry ,
Political Parties ,
Preferred Shares ,
Private Offerings ,
Privately Held Corporations ,
Proxy Advisory Firms ,
Publicly-Traded Companies ,
Refinancing ,
Regulatory Agenda ,
Reporting Requirements ,
SCOTUS ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Securities Litigation ,
Separation of Powers ,
Shareholder Activism ,
Shareholder Proposals ,
Shareholders ,
Split of Authority ,
State Labor Laws ,
Stock Drop Litigation ,
Tax Cuts and Jobs Act ,
Tax Litigation ,
Technology Sector ,
Third-Party Release Agrements ,
Transparency ,
UK ,
UK Brexit ,
Valuation ,
White Collar Crimes
In 2018, the number of blockchain-enabled projects increased sharply as established companies sought to apply distributed ledger technology to their existing business models and startups developed new and disruptive models...more
1/18/2019
/ AML/CFT ,
Blockchain ,
CFTC ,
Commodity Exchange Act (CEA) ,
Cryptocurrency ,
Derivatives ,
Distributed Ledger Technology (DLT) ,
EU ,
FinCEN ,
FinHub ,
General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) ,
Initial Coin Offering (ICOs) ,
Popular ,
Proposed Legislation ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Token Sales ,
Unregistered Securities
This is the second edition of The Distributed Ledger, a periodic publication covering the latest trends and developments in blockchain technology, digital assets and smart contracts. In this issue, we examine the SEC’s new...more
11/8/2018
/ Anti-Money Laundering ,
Blockchain ,
CFTC ,
CNIL ,
Commodity Exchange Act (CEA) ,
Cross-Border Transactions ,
Data Controller ,
Data Processors ,
Digital Assets ,
EU ,
FATF ,
FinHub ,
FinTech ,
Initial Coin Offering (ICOs) ,
International Data Transfers ,
Personally Identifiable Information ,
Popular ,
Regulatory Agenda ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Smart Contracts ,
Startups ,
Terrorist Financing Regulations ,
Virtual Currency
This is the inaugural issue of The Distributed Ledger, a periodic publication covering the latest trends and developments in blockchain technology, digital assets and smart contracts. In this edition, we examine a federal...more
10/16/2018
/ Anti-Fraud Provisions ,
Blockchain ,
CFTC ,
Commodities ,
Commodity Exchange Act (CEA) ,
Conflicts of Interest ,
Consumer Protection Laws ,
Corporate Counsel ,
Cryptocurrency ,
Digital Assets ,
Distributed Ledger Technology (DLT) ,
Exclusive Jurisdiction ,
Fraud ,
Misappropriation ,
NYDFS ,
Popular ,
Research and Development ,
Smart Contracts ,
State Attorneys General ,
State Legislatures ,
Trade Market Abuse ,
Trading Platforms ,
Virtual Currency ,
Young Lawyers
The market for cryptocurrencies and the current wave of initial coin offerings (ICOs) that seek to raise capital for blockchain-based projects have enjoyed a swell of popularity in recent years. U.S. regulatory agencies and...more
6/20/2018
/ Blockchain ,
Breach of Contract ,
CFTC ,
Commodities ,
Cryptocurrency ,
Digital Currency ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Initial Coin Offering (ICOs) ,
Investment Contract ,
Popular ,
Rule 10(b) ,
Securities ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Securities Exchange Act ,
Token Sales ,
Unjust Enrichment ,
Unregistered Securities
On March 6, 2018, Judge Jack B. Weinstein of the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of New York ruled that virtual currencies are commodities under the Commodity Exchange Act (CEA) and therefore subject to the...more
3/8/2018
/ Administrative Authority ,
CFTC ,
Commodities ,
Commodity Exchange Act (CEA) ,
Derivatives ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Fraud ,
Jurisdiction ,
Market Manipulation ,
Preliminary Injunctions ,
Standing ,
Trial Court Orders ,
Virtual Currency
On December 15, 2017, the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC or Commission) released its proposed interpretation of the term “actual delivery” with respect to virtual currency retail commodity transactions. A retail...more
On December 1, 2017, the Chicago Mercantile Exchange and CBOE Futures Exchange took the necessary regulatory steps to begin trading new bitcoin futures contracts this month. The Cantor Exchange took similar steps to begin...more
On October 17, 2017, the Commodity Futures Trading Commission’s (CFTC) newly formed financial technology (fintech) innovation group, LabCFTC, released its first fintech primer, “A CFTC Primer on Virtual Currencies” (VC...more
11/15/2017
/ Bitcoin ,
Blockchain ,
CFTC ,
Commodities ,
Cryptocurrency ,
Digital Currency ,
Distributed Ledger Technology (DLT) ,
Financial Instruments ,
Financial Markets ,
FinTech ,
Initial Coin Offering (ICOs) ,
LabCFTC ,
Regulatory Oversight ,
Swaps ,
Token Sales ,
Unregistered Securities ,
Virtual Currency
In this edition of our Privacy & Cybersecurity Update, we examine the Sixth Circuit's decision to allow injury-in-fact to be established by alleging a "substantial risk of harm" in a data breach case, New York state's...more
10/3/2016
/ Article III ,
CFTC ,
Class Action ,
Commodities ,
Corporate Counsel ,
Cybersecurity ,
Data Breach ,
Data Protection ,
Data Protection Authority ,
EU ,
EU-US Privacy Shield ,
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) ,
Financial Institutions ,
Financial Markets ,
Germany ,
International Data Transfers ,
NIST ,
NYDFS ,
Personal Data ,
Popular ,
Standing ,
UK ,
Young Lawyers