The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has taken a significant step in its regulatory scrutiny of blockchain gaming projects by issuing a Wells notice to CyberKongz, a prominent NFT gaming platform. This...more
Digital assets, including blockchain and cryptocurrency protocols and companies, have been in a defensive posture for much of 2022, 2023 and 2024. The collapse of crypto exchange FTX and numerous enforcement actions taken by...more
Businesses in the blockchain and cryptoasset space are increasingly looking to utilise digital currency and other cryptoassets as an alternative to or alongside other, more traditional employee incentive arrangements, such as...more
Last June (2023), in response to a ruling request from Your Special Delivery Services Specialty Logistics (YSDS), Customs and Border Protection (CBP) issued HQ H324098, clarifying what it means to be an “owner or purchaser”...more
The world of cryptocurrencies on blockchains and the world of traditional assets in markets have often stood in stark contrast to one another since Bitcoin’s creation in 2008. The lack of a reliable bridge between these two...more
The European Council (Council) and the European Parliament (Parliament) announced on 30 June 2022 that they had reached a provisional agreement on the proposal for regulation on markets in cryptoassets (MiCA). The text of...more
The Regulation on Markets in Crypto-assets (MiCAR) seeks to regulate a broad range of crypto-related products and services that do not currently fall within the scope of existing EU financial services legislation. It does not...more
Of all the types of legal cases, family law cases are often the most complex. "They’re like a pie, and there are different slices,” explains JAMS neutral Hon. Lorna A. Alksne (Ret.). “There’s child custody, there’s child...more
Share-based compensation is the most popular reward method among employees and service providers in many industries today, especially the high-tech industry. From the grantee’s point of view, the receipt of options enables a...more
The regime introduces rules on various crypto tokens, including cryptocurrencies and stablecoins, in the Dubai International Financial Centre. On November 1, 2022, the Dubai Financial Services Authority (DFSA) crypto...more
The 2022 Australian Open will likely be remembered for the Rafael Nadal and Ash Barty match where in which Ash Barty’s dominant play enabled him to become the first Australian to win the Australian Open in over four decades....more
STOs and NFTs - STOs stands for “security token offerings.” They involve an offering of digitalized securities such as stocks, bonds, or other token and coin projects. The difference between an IPO and an STO is that STOs...more
Uses of Cryptocurrency Overview- As previously detailed, there are a number of regulations surrounding Cryptocurrencies which vary by location (State Regulations) and by federal agency (FINCEN Regulations, IRS Regulations,...more
Bankruptcy courts may provide relief to debtors by discharging pre-petition obligations to repay existing debts owed to creditors, and claims by equity holders. Creditors who hold debt and investors who hold equity interests,...more
HMRC confirms that cryptoassets are not considered to be money or currency for tax purposes. On 1 November 2019, HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC) issued a policy paper on the taxation of cryptoassets for businesses and...more
In light of an increasing demand for virtual asset investment products, the Hong Kong Securities and Futures Commission (SFC) has been taking steps to clarify the legal and regulatory requirements for this market. In this...more
The UK tax authority, Her Majesty’s Revenue & Customs (HMRC), has taken a further step towards tackling perceived tax avoidance in transactions involving cryptoassets. Specifically, according to press reports, exchanges such...more
Federal regulators start to address some of the recent questions about digital assets such as tokens and virtual currencies, though many questions remain. U.S. Regulators and Congress are grappling with how to manage the...more
On 31 July 2019 the UK Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) published final Guidance on the cryptoasset activities within its regulatory perimeter, in response to feedback on its January 2019 consultation paper and as trailed in...more
The SEC issues second no-action letter for a digital token, but will “utility” token offerings reach the next level? Gamers, rejoice! In only its second no-action letter to date for digital tokens, the SEC cleared the way...more
The United Kingdom’s Financial Conduct Authority proposed to ban the marketing and sale in or from the UK to retail persons of derivatives and exchange-traded notes based on cryptocurrencies and utility digital tokens,...more
Rapid advances in blockchain technology are reinventing the way companies operate and deliver products and services to their clients. These changes are particularly visible in the mining & metals industry, a sector that has...more
U.S. Developments - U.S. Federal Regulatory Developments - SEC Staff Holds FinTech Forum to Discuss Blockchain Technology and Digital Assets - On May 31, 2019, the staff of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission...more
Currently, cryptoasset exchanges and wallet providers are not generally required (depending on their business model) to identify their customers, monitor transactions or report suspicious activity. On 15 April HM Treasury...more
On April 3, 2019, Finhub, the SEC’s Strategic Hub for Innovation and Financial Technology, released the “Framework for ‘Investment Contract’ analysis of digital assets” (the “Framework”) providing principles for analyzing...more