On April 1, 2025, the Texas Association for Money Service Businesses filed a lawsuit in San Antonio federal court challenging the recent Geographic Targeting Order (GTO) applicable to money services businesses (MSBs) located...more
The final judicial barrier to the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network’s enforcement of the Corporate Transparency Act’s beneficial ownership information (BOI) reporting requirements has been lifted.
The Corporate...more
President Trump’s February 10, 2025 Executive Order pausing Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) enforcement and ordering an overhaul of FCPA policy marks a significant shift by the Department of Justice (DOJ), at least in...more
2/13/2025
/ Anti-Corruption ,
Attorney General ,
Bribery ,
Compliance ,
Corporate Governance ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Enforcement Priorities ,
Executive Orders ,
Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) ,
Regulatory Reform ,
Trump Administration
On December 26, 2024, the US Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit changed course, effectively reinstating the preliminary injunction enjoining enforcement of the Corporate Transparency Act (CTA)....more
12/31/2024
/ Appeals ,
Beneficial Owner ,
Business Entities ,
Business Ownership ,
Corporate Transparency Act ,
Filing Deadlines ,
Filing Requirements ,
FinCEN ,
Preliminary Injunctions ,
Regulatory Agenda ,
Regulatory Requirements ,
Reinstatement ,
Reporting Requirements ,
Smaller Reporting Companies ,
Stays ,
Time Extensions ,
Vacated
On December 3, 2024, the US District Court in the Eastern District of Texas (the Texas Federal Court) granted a nationwide preliminary injunction in favor of certain small businesses, ruling (1) the Corporate Transparency Act...more
12/17/2024
/ Beneficial Owner ,
Business Ownership ,
Corporate Transparency Act ,
Disclosure Requirements ,
FinCEN ,
Injunctions ,
Popular ,
Preliminary Injunctions ,
Reporting Requirements ,
Small Business ,
Suspended Judgment ,
Unconstitutional Condition
The booklet summarises key financial crime related legal and regulatory changes expected over the next 18 months to 2 years, as well as providing electronic links to key resources.
Key developments:
- US Supreme Court...more
10/3/2024
/ Chevron Deference ,
Corporate Transparency Act ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
FBAR ,
Financial Crimes ,
IRS ,
Legislative Agendas ,
Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) ,
Regulatory Agenda ,
Regulatory Reform ,
SCOTUS ,
Whistleblower Protection Policies
Last Monday, the Department of Justice (the DOJ or the Department) announced significant updates to the DOJ Criminal Division’s Evaluation of Corporate Compliance Programs (ECCP). These updates discuss, for the first time,...more
The Department of Justice has announced yet another pilot program, adding to their “mix of carrots and sticks” designed “to promote responsible corporate citizenship.” The new whistleblower pilot program, which is still under...more
3/25/2024
/ Compliance ,
Corporate Crimes ,
Corporate Misconduct ,
Corruption ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Disclosure Requirements ,
Extortion ,
Pilot Programs ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Voluntary Disclosure ,
Whistleblower Awards ,
Whistleblowers ,
White Collar Crimes
On March 1, 2024, the United States District Court for the Northern District of Alabama found that the Corporate Transparency Act (CTA) is unconstitutional because it exceeds Congress’ legislative power. The 53-page opinion...more
“Call us before we call you.” With this message, on January 10, 2024, the Southern District of New York announced the SDNY Whistleblower Pilot Program (Pilot Program), which seeks to encourage individual participants in...more
1/25/2024
/ Compliance ,
Cooperation ,
Corporate Crimes ,
Corporate Misconduct ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) ,
Non-Prosecution Agreements ,
Pilot Programs ,
Voluntary Disclosure ,
Whistleblower Protection Policies ,
Whistleblowers ,
White Collar Crimes
As of January 10, 2024, US securities exchanges may list Bitcoin ETFs for trading. Cryptocurrency enthusiasts hope this decision signals a broader adoption of cryptocurrency in the United States. Perhaps it does, but...more
The Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) issued the Beneficial Ownership Information Access and Safeguards Rule (Access Rule) establishing the framework for access to and protection of beneficial ownership...more
1/8/2024
/ Beneficial Owner ,
Corporate Transparency Act ,
Customer Due Diligence (CDD) ,
Final Rules ,
Financial Institutions ,
FinCEN ,
Foreign Entities ,
Gramm-Leach-Blilely Act ,
Policies and Procedures ,
Regulatory Oversight ,
Reporting Requirements ,
U.S. Treasury
On October 4, 2023, US Deputy Attorney General (DAG) Lisa Monaco announced that the US Department of Justice (DOJ) is adopting a new Mergers & Acquisitions Safe Harbor Policy, incentivizing companies to voluntarily disclose...more
10/10/2023
/ Acquisitions ,
Antitrust Division ,
Compliance ,
Cooperation ,
Corporate Misconduct ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Due Diligence ,
Mergers ,
Policies and Procedures ,
Safe Harbors ,
Voluntary Disclosure
The Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) has proposed extending the deadline for certain companies to comply with the Corporate Transparency Act (CTA) and report their beneficial ownership information (BOI) from 30...more
On August 28, 2023, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) announced a settled enforcement action against Impact Theory LLC (Impact Theory) for the unregistered sale of non-fungible tokens (NFTs) that the SEC determined...more
On February 22, 2023, the US Department of Justice issued a nationwide policy for all US Attorney’s Offices (USAOs) outlining the circumstances in which a company may receive credit for voluntary self-disclosure (VSD)....more
On January 17, 2023, Assistant Attorney General Kenneth A. Polite, Jr. (AAG Polite) announced changes to the Department of Justice’s (DOJ) FCPA Corporate Enforcement Policy (CEP). The CEP, which applies to all Criminal...more
1/25/2023
/ Compliance ,
Cooperation ,
Corporate Crimes ,
Corporate Misconduct ,
Criminal Prosecution ,
Declination ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Disgorgement ,
Enforcement Priorities ,
Forfeiture ,
Restitution ,
Voluntary Disclosure ,
White Collar Crimes
The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has unanimously adopted amendments to Rule 10b5-1 (the Rule), which prohibits the purchase or sale of securities on the basis of material nonpublic information (MNPI) in violation...more
1/5/2023
/ Amended Rules ,
Certification Requirements ,
Cooling-Off Rule ,
Disclosure Requirements ,
Insider Trading ,
Material Nonpublic Information ,
Rule 10(b) ,
Rule 10b-5 ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Securities Exchange Act ,
Securities Fraud ,
Trading Plans
Certain companies will soon have to give the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) a look behind the corporate veil. In December 2021, FinCEN issued a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) seeking comment on one...more
On September 27, 2022, 15 broker-dealers and one investment adviser agreed to pay more than $1.8 billion in total civil penalties to the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), and, for those same companies or affiliates...more
10/5/2022
/ Broker-Dealer ,
CFTC ,
Civil Monetary Penalty ,
Criminal Prosecution ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Electronic Communications ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) ,
Futures Commission Merchants (FCMs) ,
Investment Adviser ,
New Guidance ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Swap Dealers ,
Swaps ,
Text Messages
On September 15, 2022, Department of Justice (DOJ) Deputy Attorney General (Deputy AG) Lisa Monaco announced new guidance for the DOJ’s corporate enforcement policies, which is memorialized in the Memorandum on Further...more
On July 21, 2022, the US Department of Justice (DOJ) unsealed an indictment charging Ishan Wahi (Wahi), a former product manager at a large cryptocurrency trading platform (the Platform) - along with his brother Nikhil Wahi...more
7/28/2022
/ Conspiracies ,
Criminal Conspiracy ,
Cryptocurrency ,
Decentralized Finance (DeFi) ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Digital Assets ,
Digital Marketplace ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Howey ,
Indictments ,
Insider Trading ,
Popular ,
Rule 10b-5 ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Wire Fraud
Last week, yet another US Department of Justice (DOJ) official reportedly stated new corporate settlements “most likely” will include a requirement that the company’s chief compliance officer (CCO), as well as the chief...more
Senators Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY) and Cynthia Lummis (R- WY) introduced new proposed legislation on June 7, 2022, which would classify the vast majority of digital assets as commodities, and empower the Commodities Futures...more
6/14/2022
/ CFTC ,
Commodities ,
Cryptoassets ,
Cryptocurrency ,
Cybersecurity ,
Digital Assets ,
Environmental Social & Governance (ESG) ,
FERC ,
FinTech ,
Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA) ,
Investment Contract ,
NIST ,
Proposed Legislation ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC)
The race to establish a national framework for the regulation of digital assets is heating up, with both California and New Jersey taking action this past week. On June 1, 2022, the California Department of Financial...more
6/9/2022
/ Biden Administration ,
Blockchain ,
California Consumer Financial Protection Law (CCFPL) ,
Consumer Financial Products ,
Cryptocurrency ,
Department of Financial Protection and Innovation (DFPI) ,
Digital Assets ,
Executive Orders ,
Governor Newsom ,
Public Comment ,
Regulatory Agenda ,
State and Local Government