As cryptocurrencies and blockchain assets become more popular and begin to permeate into the wider financial markets, regulators have struggled to understand how they work and how to treat them under existing legal...more
The ICO boom in 2017 brings with it questions of jurisdiction and compliance, and a need for further guidance - The benefits of ICOs in raising capital, as well as in providing a marketing push for a new business model,...more
On October 17, 2017, the Ontario Securities Commission (OSC) issued its decision In the Matter of Token Funder Inc. The decision granted exemptive relief from the dealer registration requirement in order to allow Token Funder...more
The list of jurisdictions that are silent on the question of whether blockchain tokens may be securities has grown smaller. Less than a month after the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and the Monetary...more
The rise in popularity of cryptocurrencies and the spread of cryptocurrency offerings have attracted increased attention from securities regulators in Canada and abroad. Recently, staff of the Canadian Securities...more
Below is a summary of some of the significant legal and regulatory actions that occurred over the past week. This alert is not intended to be a comprehensive list of all such developments, but rather a selection of...more
For the past few months, issuers of token sales or “initial coin offerings” (ICOs) have known that they were, to some extent, sailing in unchartered waters. Those waters have just gotten a bit murkier with an announcement by...more
Initial Coin Offerings (ICOs) involve issuers offering virtual coins or tokens that are created and disseminated using distributed ledger or blockchain technology. The capital raised from the offer will fund the development...more
Was there ever any doubt? On August 24, 2017, the Canadian Securities Administrators (CSA) issued Staff Notice 46-307 – Cryptocurrency Offerings providing guidance on the applicability of Canadian securities laws to...more