Videocast: Asset management regulation in 2020 videocast series – FinTech initiatives
The inauguration of President Donald J. Trump has been widely celebrated as the dawn of the first pro-crypto presidential administration – a dramatic shift from the Biden administration’s antagonistic stance on crypto. But...more
The landscape of government enforcement, private litigation and federal and state regulation of digital assets, blockchain and related technologies is constantly evolving. Each quarter, Ropes & Gray attorneys analyze...more
Enforcement during Gensler administration was considerably higher than during the previous administration. The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) brought 33 cryptocurrency-related enforcement actions in 2024, the...more
On Friday, January 17, 2024, President Donald J. Trump announced the launch of the $TRUMP memecoin, which was organized and sold by CIC Digital, an affiliate of the Trump Organization. Within 60 hours, $TRUMP reportedly...more
On December 20, 2024, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC”) announced charges against two private companies and one registered investment adviser (the “Parties”). These charges asserted that the Parties...more
On 14 January 2025, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) announced settled charges against three investment adviser representatives for acting as unregistered brokers in the sale of membership interests in certain...more
In this issue of our monthly Securities Enforcement Roundup, we highlight top securities enforcement developments and cases from December 2024. In December 2024: President-elect Trump nominated former SEC Commissioner Paul...more
On December 20, 2024, the Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) announced charges against two private companies and a registered investment advisor for failure to file a Form D in connection with exempt offerings under...more
On December 20, 2024, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC”) issued a press release highlighting settled enforcement actions against a private fund adviser and two pre-IPO companies for failure to timely file...more
A recent order handed down by U.S. District Judge Vince Chhabria of the Northern District of California could be a new source of concern for digital asset entrepreneurs and the venture capital firms that invest in and support...more
Yet another “celebrity” token memecoin project seeking to leverage a “cultural movement” has become the subject of a lawsuit alleging that the tokens were unregistered securities. A group of plaintiffs recently sued over the...more
The election of Donald Trump as president could have a significant impact on the crypto industry given his campaign promise of a procrypto administration. Trump will be able to appoint a new chair of the U.S. Securities and...more
Stablecoin Initiatives Announced by Fintech Companies, DeFi Protocols - Major U.S. payments firm recently announced plans to enable “disbursement partners” to use the PYUSD stablecoin to settle cross-border money...more
The recent sentencing of Zixiao "Gary" Wang, a tech expert involved in the $11 billion FTX fraud, underscores the importance of cooperation with authorities in complex and high-stakes crypto cases. Wang, who admitted to...more
The election of Donald J. Trump as President could have a significant impact on the crypto industry given his campaign promise of a pro-crypto administration. President Trump will be able to appoint a new chair of the...more
On October 10, 2024, the United States Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) filed a complaint in Illinois federal district court, alleging that diversified trading firm (“Company”) has operated as an unregistered...more
Although the excitement for non-fungible tokens (NFTs) may have faded since its peak in 2022, the world’s largest NFT marketplace, OpenSea, has new and unwanted attention from the SEC. In addition to a potential enforcement...more
Payments Firms Launch Crypto Products, New Crypto Adoption Data Published - According to a recent press release, a well-known U.S. payments and financial technology company announced that it will allow its United States...more
Each month, we publish a roundup of the most important SEC enforcement developments for busy in-house lawyers and compliance professionals. This month, we examine: •The SEC’s case against crypto firm Kraken is permitted to...more
In its third action involving NFTs, the SEC targets a restaurant membership token tied to fundraising and promises of potential price appreciation for buyers....more
Crypto Payments Firms Announce New Integrations and Initiatives - According to reports, fintech bank Revolut recently announced a partnership with Ledger, a major crypto hardware wallet provider, to make it easier for...more
On August 7, 2024, nearly four years after the SEC filed its complaint alleging Ripple sold XRP in unregistered securities transactions in violation of Section 5 of the Securities Act, the district court issued its final...more
In a setback to the Securities and Exchange Commission’s (SEC) crypto enforcement efforts, a federal court has denied the agency’s request for disgorgement of profits in its case against Ripple Labs. The ruling, issued by...more
On Aug. 7, the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York issued its judgment in U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission v. Ripple Labs, Inc., marking the end of district court- level proceedings in the highly...more
Recently, the SEC released its complaint against a digital platform that acted as an unregistered broker and seller of crypto-asset securities transactions. The SEC alleges that since 2020 the platform brokered over 36...more