On 29 October 2024, the Hong Kong District Court issued the judgment of the first legal action (Chan Wing Yan and Another v. JP-EX Crypto Asset Platform Ltd and Others [2024] HKDC 1628) against JPEX, which the Hong Kong...more
On March 26, 2024, the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission (“CFTC”) filed a complaint (the “Complaint”) in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York (“SDNY”) for injunctive and other relief against...more
Binance, the world’s largest cryptocurrency trading platform, has recently been hit with a staggering $4.3 billion fine for intentionally violating anti-money laundering laws and other financial regulations. This landmark...more
Hong Kong regulators recently brought criminal enforcement actions against virtual asset trading platform JPEX and individuals associated with the platform. This case has become the first opportunity for local authorities to...more
On May 1, NYDFS settled with a cryptocurrency trading platform over the company’s cybersecurity deficiencies, resulting in a consent order and $1.2 million fine for the crypto company. NYDFS alleged “multiple deficiencies in...more
The cryptocurrency industry has a target on its back – and perhaps justifiably so. The SEC, CFTC and OFAC have been bringing a number of regulatory enforcement actions, including against Bittrex, Inc. ($24,280,829.20 in...more
On April 14, the SEC reopened the comment period on proposed amendments to the statutory definition of “exchange” under Exchange Act rule 3b-16, which now includes systems that facilitate the trading of crypto asset...more
On March 27, the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (“CFTC”), the U.S. derivatives regulator, charged three Binance entities (collectively “Binance”) and its founder and chief compliance officer (“CCO”) with numerous...more
Against a backdrop of near-daily enforcement actions and constant regulatory changes, Montana inched into the fray by publishing a letter calling on money transmitters to make a submission to the Montana Department of Banking...more
On March 9, the New York attorney general filed a petition in state court against a virtual currency trading platform (respondent) for allegedly failing to registeras a securities and commodities broker-dealer and falsely...more
On top of all the legal trouble for FTX’s founder and CEO, Sam Bankman-Fried (“SBF”), the company has also filed for bankruptcy and SBF has been ousted as CEO. John J. Ray III, an attorney and bankruptcy professional, has...more
In conjunction with the DOJ’s criminal indictment, the SEC brought civil charges against SBF. The SEC charged SBF with orchestrating a scheme to defraud equity investors in the FTX exchange (FTX Trading Ltd.). The SEC...more
Following FTX’s stunning collapse, federal prosecutors have quickly taken steps to hold FTX’s founder and CEO Sam Bankman-Fried (“SBF”) accountable. On December 13, the Department of Justice (“DOJ”) announced a criminal...more
The cryptocurrency world is in shock watching the events unfold around the stunning collapse of FTX, one of the largest crypto exchanges in the world. The exchange seemed untouchable just days before everything fell apart. ...more
Things change, at least sometimes. Take Crypto assets. They began as a way to “get off the grid.” Over time some came on to the grid as their popularity increased. Others stayed off....more
Since at least 2016 the IRS has been ferreting out taxpayers who failed to report their taxable gains from cryptocurrency transactions by issuing John Doe summonses to crypto exchanges and dealers. A John Doe summons enables...more
In a sudden and stunning collapse, FTX, the world’s second largest cryptocurrency exchange, run by 30-year-old Sam Bankman-Fried along with more than 130 entities affiliated with FTX, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy...more
This morning, the FTX crypto exchange (and more than 130 affiliates) filed for bankruptcy in Delaware. FTX was recently valued at $32 billion, and now it appears to be worth $0. The bankruptcy petition listed at least $10...more
In an unwelcome reminder of the events that unfolded in the wake of the May 2022 crypto market collapse, Bahamian-based crypto exchange FTX is reportedly on the brink of collapse following an unexpected surge in...more
The U.S. Treasury Department’s Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) and Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) announced yesterday that they had reached settlements for over $24 million and $29 million,...more
Unlike the current prohibitive policies on the trading and dealing of cryptocurrencies in China, the Chinese government has taken a more pragmatic approach towards non-fungible tokens (“NFTs”). It considers NFTs to be...more
In last week's Cabinet News and Views, we examined the U.S. regulators' approach to the digital asset space, with a focus on the assertion of jurisdiction by the CFTC, the SEC, prudential regulators, state executive and...more
On Friday March 12, Bloomberg News reported that the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (“CFTC”) has opened an inquiry into Binance Holdings Ltd. (“Binance”) to investigate allegations that the exchange allowed US citizens...more
On November 8, 2018, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) announced that it settled charges against Zachary Coburn, the founder of blockchain token trading platform EtherDelta, over operating an unregistered...more