The past two weeks have been relatively quiet, with stablecoins being the most prominent focus on the regulatory front. Stablecoin legislation now appears likely this year, with a bill to regulate stablecoins advancing out of...more
The past two weeks brought some notable progress for the industry, though it still often feels like “regulation by lack of enforcement” rather than a truly proactive approach. The SEC clarified that most proof-of-work mining...more
3/28/2025
/ CFTC ,
Cryptocurrency ,
Decentralized Finance (DeFi) ,
Digital Assets ,
FinCEN ,
IRS ,
New Legislation ,
Ripple ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Securities Regulation ,
Stablecoins
In an action that could have broad implications, U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission Staff (Staff) issued a statement on February 27, 2025, through its Division of Corporation Finance, providing clarity on the application...more
Three of the SEC’s key enforcement actions—all extensively covered in BitBlog and widely seen as emblematic of the agency’s adversarial stance toward the industry—are reportedly being halted or dismissed. The SEC has agreed...more
2/27/2025
/ Blockchain ,
CFTC ,
Civil Monetary Penalty ,
Coinbase ,
Cryptocurrency ,
Cybersecurity ,
Digital Assets ,
Dismissals ,
Enforcement Actions ,
FinTech ,
Regulatory Agenda ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Securities Regulation
The first weeks of February have been eventful for digital asset regulation, with major policy shifts, legal battles and legislative initiatives shaping the future of Web3. The SEC’s formation of a dedicated crypto rulemaking...more
The legal landscape surrounding blockchain technology underwent dramatic shifts in 2024, particularly in the United States, offering both remarkable opportunities and substantial compliance challenges. Governments introduced...more
1/10/2025
/ Blockchain ,
Cryptoassets ,
Cryptocurrency ,
Digital Assets ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Enforcement Priorities ,
Non-Fungible Tokens (NFTs) ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Securities Litigation ,
Securities Regulation ,
Startups
With Bitcoin hitting record highs and breaking a barrier long seen as aspirational, and with a new administration making key appointments, the year is ending with much excitement and momentum for the digital assets industry....more
12/20/2024
/ Bitcoin ,
Blockchain ,
Crypto Exchanges ,
Cryptoassets ,
Cryptocurrency ,
Digital Assets ,
ETFs ,
Financial Services Industry ,
FinTech ,
Investment ,
Securities ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Securities Regulation
The Polsinelli Blockchain+ team took a break from the usual Bi-Weekly updates for the Thanksgiving holiday, but the Web3 legal developments did not. There was a significant ruling out of the 5th Circuit, which has major...more
After a relatively quiet October for Web3 legal developments, November has kicked off with significant activity, primarily centered around ongoing lawsuits and regulatory enforcement actions. In addition to these legal...more
It’s fitting that our second October Web3 legal update arrives on Halloween, as many in the industry might find the current legal landscape for digital asset products and services quite spooky. While the past few weeks have...more
11/1/2024
/ Blockchain ,
CFTC ,
Coinbase ,
Critical Infrastructure Sectors ,
Cryptocurrency ,
Digital Assets ,
Ethereum ,
Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) ,
FOIA ,
Internet ,
Metaverse ,
SEC Examination Priorities ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Securities Regulation
The SEC has been busy, both in bringing actions against digital industry participants and in defending against affirmative lawsuits brought against the agency regarding the lack of notice and rulemaking for digital assets...more
10/17/2024
/ Administrative Procedure Act ,
Bitcoin ,
Coinbase ,
Cryptoassets ,
Cryptocurrency ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Digital Assets ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Financial Markets ,
Investment Opportunities ,
Regulatory Violations ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Securities Regulation ,
Stablecoins
The last two weeks have seen a flurry of Congressional hearings addressing key digital asset issues, alongside several noteworthy consent judgments against industry participants from the SEC. These fast-paced developments are...more
In the last few weeks, decisions by regulatory agencies and courts overseeing cryptocurrency disputes have dominated the Web3 legal news. This can be expected to continue, even as Congress comes back from its August break, as...more
As Congress is on its August recess, litigation over digital asset issues continued with major developments in the Yuga Labs trademark case and the SEC cases against Kraken and Consensys. While these matters all involve...more
8/30/2024
/ Blockchain ,
Capital Markets ,
Class Action ,
Cryptocurrency ,
Digital Assets ,
Digital Wallets ,
Distributed Ledger Technology (DLT) ,
FinTech ,
Non-Fungible Tokens (NFTs) ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Securities Litigation ,
Securities Regulation ,
Smart Contracts
As the end of summer approaches, litigation in the digital asset industry has remained hot. In the SEC’s cases against various exchanges, ongoing discovery fights are starting to play out in court filings, and one can expect...more
8/15/2024
/ Bitcoin ,
Blockchain ,
Coinbase ,
Cryptocurrency ,
Digital Assets ,
Digital Currency ,
Distributed Ledger Technology (DLT) ,
Enforcement Actions ,
FinTech ,
Non-Fungible Tokens (NFTs) ,
Ripple ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Securities Violations ,
Token Sales
While the nation was preoccupied with the significant developments in the Presidential race, advocates and promoters of the blockchain ecosystem were particularly attentive to the news, given the perception that the current...more
7/25/2024
/ Blockchain ,
CFTC ,
Cryptocurrency ,
Decentralized Autonomous Organization (DAO) ,
Digital Currency ,
Distributed Ledger Technology (DLT) ,
ETFs ,
Ether ,
Financial Instruments ,
Financial Markets ,
Presidential Elections ,
Regulatory Oversight ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Virtual Currency ,
Wells Notice
The last week of June saw a flurry of legal developments in quick succession. The SEC sued Consensys, the developers of the largest self-custodial digital wallet (MetaMask). The IRS released its digital asset tax rules. The...more
7/12/2024
/ Blockchain ,
Broker-Dealer ,
Cryptoassets ,
Cryptocurrency ,
Digital Assets ,
Digital Wallets ,
FDIC ,
Financial Institutions ,
Financial Services Industry ,
FOIA ,
IRS ,
Securities ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC)
On June 15, 2023, the Polsinelli Blockchain+ team put out our first Bi-Weekly rundown of some of the key stories in the Web3, blockchain, and crypto ecosystems curated by Polsinelli attorneys navigating the intersections of...more
6/27/2024
/ Bitcoin ,
Blockchain ,
Class Action ,
Cryptocurrency ,
Digital Currency ,
Distributed Ledger Technology (DLT) ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Ethereum ,
Financial Services Industry ,
FinTech ,
Martin Shkreli ,
Ripple ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Securities Fraud ,
Securities Litigation ,
Securities Violations
Our last update included a whirlwind of activities, with the surprisingly bipartisan House of Representatives vote on FIT 21 and the SEC’s approval of certain Ether spot ETF rule change proposals coming in quick succession....more
6/13/2024
/ Blockchain ,
Class Action ,
Coinbase ,
Cryptocurrency ,
Digital Assets ,
EFTs ,
Financial Markets ,
Investment ,
Non-Fungible Tokens (NFTs) ,
Presidential Veto ,
Private Funds ,
Rulemaking Process ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Securities Litigation ,
Securities Regulation ,
Token Sales
The week of May 19-25 was the most promising for the regulation of blockchain technology in the United States in a very long time. Polsinelli’s Blockchain+ team delayed the publication of this Bi-Weekly update by a week to...more
5/29/2024
/ Blockchain ,
Crypto Exchanges ,
Cryptocurrency ,
Decentralized Finance (DeFi) ,
Digital Assets ,
Distributed Ledger Technology (DLT) ,
ETFs ,
FinTech ,
Investment ,
Proposed Legislation ,
Regulatory Agenda ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Wells Notice
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
5/9/2024
/ Blockchain ,
Cryptocurrency ,
Digital Assets ,
Digital Wallets ,
Investment Opportunities ,
Robinhood Financial ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Securities Violations ,
Trading Platforms ,
Unregistered Securities ,
Wells Notice
The focus in Web3 law the past few weeks has been on jurisdictional issues when litigating matters involving borderless digital asset transactions. This is expected to be an ongoing issue, as courts work through these...more
4/25/2024
/ Blockchain ,
Criminal Prosecution ,
Cryptocurrency ,
Decentralized Finance (DeFi) ,
Digital Assets ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Financial Transactions ,
Investment Opportunities ,
IRS ,
Securities Regulation ,
Securities Violations ,
Stablecoins ,
Unregistered Securities
The biggest legal news of the past two weeks was the Coinbase loss on two of three categories of claims at the Judgment on the Pleadings stage of litigation against the SEC. While it is rare to win at such an early stage in...more
4/15/2024
/ Bitcoin ,
Blockchain ,
Coinbase ,
Criminal Prosecution ,
Crypto Exchanges ,
Cryptocurrency ,
Decentralized Finance (DeFi) ,
Digital Assets ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Investment ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Securities Fraud
It was a busy two weeks in Web3 law, as Binance lost in an appeal that could have wide-ranging jurisdictional implications outside of just digital assets. Coinbase also went on the offensive against the SEC in appealing the...more
3/29/2024
/ Blockchain ,
CFTC ,
Coinbase ,
Commodity Exchange Act (CEA) ,
Copyright Office ,
Crypto Exchanges ,
Cryptocurrency ,
Digital Assets ,
Intellectual Property Protection ,
Jurisdiction ,
Non-Fungible Tokens (NFTs) ,
Regulatory Oversight ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
USPTO
It was a busy week for digital assets with the Securities and Exchange Commission, as the agency was sued by a digital asset exchange hopeful and faces responses in its pending litigation against existing digital asset...more
3/14/2024
/ Blockchain ,
Crypto Exchanges ,
Cryptocurrency ,
Decentralized Autonomous Organization (DAO) ,
Digital Assets ,
Digital Currency ,
Distributed Ledger Technology (DLT) ,
Enforcement Actions ,
FinTech ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Securities Regulation ,
Securities Violations ,
Smart Contracts