The Cayman Islands Government has taken a significant step in the regulation of virtual asset service providers (VASPs) with the commencement of the licensing regime under the Virtual Asset (Service Providers) Act (as...more
On April 10, 2025, the SEC’s newly formed Crypto Task Force held the second of its promised series of roundtables in the SEC’s “Spring Sprint Toward Crypto Clarity” initiative. Titled “Between a Block and a Hard Place:...more
The VASP Act defines “Virtual Assets” as digital representations of value that can be digitally traded or transferred and can be used for payment or investment purposes. Digital representations of fiat currencies (which is...more
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
What is the action cryptocurrency investors need to take immediately? What has changed, and why should any digital asset holder or investor pay attention to this game-changing development? Here is the short answer: If you...more
In recent years, the virtual asset industry has experienced exponential growth, bringing about innovations in digital payments, tokenisation and decentralised finance (Defi). While highly innovative, the volatile nature of...more
This monthly bulletin is designed to help companies identify important legal developments governing the use and acceptance of blockchain technology, smart contracts, and digital assets....more
Pig Butchering Crypto Scams are scams which resemble the practice of fattening a hog before slaughter....more
El 4/19/24, el IRS publicó el borrador del Formulario 1099-DA para reportar los ingresos de activos digitales de las transacciones de corredores. El IRS afirma que: “Este borrador preliminar refleja el Aviso de Reglamentación...more
Big news dropped in the past few weeks, which sent shockwaves across the industry: according to a recently filed lawsuit, the SEC has classified the second largest cryptocurrency, Ether, as a security in certain ongoing...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
More than 50% increase in SEC cryptocurrency-related enforcement actions in 2023 over 2022. The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) continues to view cryptocurrency-related enforcement as a top priority, bringing 46...more
In November 2023, almost 11,000 cryptocurrencies and digital tokens were listed on CoinMarketCaps.com. In addition, tens of thousands of non-fungible tokens (NFTs) are sold daily on various crypto exchanges and NFT platforms....more
On November 20, the SEC filed a complaint in the U.S. District Court of the Northern District of California against a crypto trading platform, which allows customers to buy and sell crypto assets through an online market, for...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 October 19, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) dismissed its claims against Ripple Labs, Inc. (Ripple) executives Bradley Garlinghouse and Christian Larsen for allegedly aiding and abetting Ripple’s violations of...more
On July 31, the SEC filed a complaint in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of New York against three cryptocurrency trading platforms and their founder for allegedly conducting unregistered offerings of crypto...more
Under the helm of SEC Chairman Gary Gensler, the Securities and Exchange Commission has argued that many cryptocurrencies qualify as “securities” under federal law, and therefore fall within the SEC’s bailiwick....more
On July 13, 2023, Judge Torres of the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York issued a much-awaited summary judgment decision in SEC v. Ripple Labs, Inc., No. 1:20-cv-10832-AT-SN (S.D.N.Y. July 13, 2023),...more
On July 5, the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York ordered a crypto platform and its CEO to each pay a civil money penalty of $141,410, as well as to jointly pay disgorgement in the same amount, in a...more
The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (the SEC or the Commission) voted on Friday, April 14, 2023, to reopen the comment period for previously proposed amendments to Rule 3b-16 under the Exchange Act of 1934 (the...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
The current regulatory requirements in Hong Kong with regards to managing funds that invest in "virtual assets" ("VA") can be summarized as follows – if an asset manager has a licence from the Hong Kong Securities and Futures...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