While the nation was preoccupied with the significant developments in the Presidential race, advocates and promoters of the blockchain ecosystem were particularly attentive to the news, given the perception that the current...more
The Blockchain Bi-Weekly presented by the Polsinelli Blockchain+ team is a rundown of some of the key stories in the Web3, blockchain and crypto ecosystems curated by our attorneys navigating the intersections of code, smart...more
On January 3, 2009, the pseudonymous “Satoshi Nakamoto” mined the first bitcoin. In the years following bitcoin’s creation, the price of a single bitcoin has increased exponentially, from essentially zero to an all-time high...more
California's governor issued an executive order requiring state agencies, led by the Department of Financial Protection and Innovation, to create a "transparent" regulatory framework for blockchain technologies and digital...more
The battle over blockchain technology and digital assets bears a striking resemblance to the debate over the potential of the internet in the mid-1990s. Where critics see a passing fad with little actual utility or a lawless...more
We’ve previously written about the push for greater regulation of digital currency and a growing number of lawsuits targeting cryptocurrency companies and their celebrity endorsers. Notwithstanding cryptocurrencies’...more
Whether a cryptocurrency product is a security is an issue with serious regulatory consequences. In recent years, the Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) has taken a broad position that various crypto assets are...more
In a recent article, SEC Commissioner Caroline A. Crenshaw encouraged decentralized finance (DeFi) participants to voluntarily comply with securities law regulations, in particular those governing risk disclosure, warning...more
The California Department of Financial Protection is warning consumers that "companies that may be engaging in unlicensed activity and/or falsely advertising cryptocurrency products and services"...more
On Sept. 14, Gary Gensler, chair of the Securities and Exchange Commission, testified before the Senate Banking Committee that the agency has authority using the existing, “broad” definition of a “security” to regulate the...more
Developments continue at a frenetic pace in the crypto industry. Issues barely on the radar screen 18 months ago have come front and center in today’s headlines. Areas with relatively small market capitalizations a year ago...more
A recent trend in the blockchain business, and particularly among cryptocurrency companies, is to seek tax-exempt status under Section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code (the Code). Brink Technology, Inc., a Bitcoin...more
While the world at large shelters in place due to COVID-19 legal and regulatory activity of digital asset and the blockchain world is hopping. ...more
Like Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid gloriously diving off a cliff, Telegram is about to take the fall and is trying to take the SEC with it. However, Telegram and supporters are making a number of important arguments in...more
The G20 has urged countries to adopt the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) standards on virtual assets and virtual asset service providers, which were adopted in June last year. ...more
SEC Commissioner Hester Peirce continues to be one of the most vocal persons in leadership positions at federal regulators who are promoting innovation in digital currency and the blockchain....more
Many crypto entrepreneurs are seeking to build decentralized networks in which a token serves as a means of exchange on, or provides access to a function of the network. In the course of building out the network, they need...more
The SEC Division of Enforcement’s 2019 Annual Report, released earlier this month, shows a continuing focus on activities involving blockchain and cryptocurrency, and its website shows an increase in cases since last fiscal...more
As the 116th Congress continues its work in the first session, several new and revived bills have been introduced concerning blockchain and cryptocurrencies. ...more
U.S. Developments - Flood of State Virtual Currency Legislation - Since the start of the new year there have been roughly nine virtual currency bills introduced or passed in four different states. Overall, the bills...more
The notion of distributed ledger (formally denominated “shared electronic recording system, or DEEP in French) was first introduced to French law in 2016 by Ordinance No. 2016-520 of April 28, 2016 (the “Minibon...more
There exists no uniformity with respect to how businesses that deal in virtual currencies (also known as "cryptocurrencies") such as Bitcoin are treated among the states....more
In the last month, UK and European politicians have been vocal about the regulation, or lack thereof, in the virtual currency sphere. ...more
Roundup of CFTC Resources - U.S. Developments - Cryptocurrency and the Colorado Money Transmitter License Act - On September 20, 2018, following months of consultation with the Colorado Attorney General’s office,...more
After allowing registration and transfer of unlisted securities through distributed ledgers in 2017 and drafting legislation for initial coin offerings (ICOs) earlier this year, France is contemplating the introduction of a...more