The court ruled OFAC overstepped its authority in sanctioning Tornado Cash, holding that its smart contracts are not “property” under the governing statutes....more
With appropriate safeguards, distributed ledger technology may expand the use of non-cash assets as derivatives collateral, while mitigating certain market infrastructure inefficiencies....more
12/13/2024
/ Blockchain ,
Books & Records ,
CFTC ,
Collateral ,
Commodity Exchange Act (CEA) ,
Compliance ,
Derivatives ,
Digital Assets ,
Distributed Ledger Technology (DLT) ,
Information Reports ,
Tokenization
On October 24, 2024, the Office of Financial Innovation (OFI) of the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority, Inc. (FINRA) published “The Metaverse and the Implications for the Securities Industry” (the Report)....more
The rule aims to reduce market concentration by guaranteeing consumer access to personal financial data, but faces strident criticism and immediate legal challenge....more
10/30/2024
/ Consumer Data Requests ,
Consumer Financial Products ,
Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) ,
Depository Institutions ,
Dodd-Frank ,
Final Rules ,
Financial Institutions ,
Financial Services Industry ,
FinTech ,
Open Banking ,
Personal Data ,
Sensitive Personal Information
Regulators seek to provide clarity and transparency on the bank merger review process, but changes may increase application complexity and unpredictability.
Consistent with ongoing initiatives to strengthen US antitrust...more
Remittance service providers would need to update their disclosure statements under a narrowly tailored proposed amendment which aims to resolve issues more efficiently and save consumers time....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
9/23/2024
/ Cease and Desist Orders ,
Corporate Counsel ,
Cryptoassets ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Howey ,
Investment Contract ,
Marketing ,
Membership Interest ,
Non-Fungible Tokens (NFTs) ,
Popular ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Settlement ,
Token Sales ,
Unregistered Securities
The proposal would make key changes to the definition of “deposit broker” with significant ramifications for banks, fintechs, bank-fintech partnerships, and other third parties in the financial services industry....more
Paycheck advance products that are deemed consumer loans under the CFPB’s new proposal would be subject to increased disclosure and regulatory protections....more
9/6/2024
/ Consumer Financial Products ,
Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) ,
Earned Wage Access ,
Financial Services Industry ,
Payday Loans ,
Popular ,
Proposed Standards ,
Public Comment ,
Regulation Z ,
Truth in Lending Act (TILA) ,
Wages
The proposal would establish stricter oversight of certain transactions and responds to concerns that large asset managers may be exerting influence on FDIC-supervised institutions.
On July 30, 2024, the Board of...more
8/9/2024
/ Acquisitions ,
Banking Sector ,
Banks ,
Change in Control ,
Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) ,
Depository Institutions ,
FDIC ,
Federal Reserve ,
Financial Institutions ,
NPRM ,
OCC ,
Proposed Amendments ,
Publicly-Traded Companies
On July 19, 2024, the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System (FRB), the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC), the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC), and the National Credit Union Administration...more
8/5/2024
/ AML/CFT ,
Anti-Money Laundering ,
Anti-Terrorism Financing ,
Bank Secrecy Act ,
Banks ,
Compliance ,
Customer Due Diligence (CDD) ,
Financial Institutions ,
Financial Regulatory Agencies ,
FinCEN ,
NPRM ,
Proposed Rules ,
Risk Assessment ,
Risk Management
OCC-supervised institutions with $100 billion or more in average total consolidated assets must be adequately prepared to mitigate severe financial and non-financial risks. ...more
Recent Supreme Court administrative law rulings change the power dynamic between the executive and the judiciary in critical areas of statutory interpretation, enforcement, and immunity from legal challenge....more
7/15/2024
/ Administrative Authority ,
Administrative Procedure Act ,
Administrative Proceedings ,
Chevron Deference ,
Corner Post Inc v Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System ,
Cryptoassets ,
Cryptocurrency ,
FinTech ,
Government Agencies ,
Judicial Authority ,
Jury Trial ,
Loper Bright Enterprises v Raimondo ,
SCOTUS ,
SEC v Jarkesy ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Seventh Amendment ,
Statute of Limitations ,
Statutory Authority ,
Statutory Interpretation
Insured depository institutions with $50 billion to less than $100 billion in average total assets are subject to new resolution reporting standards, with enhanced reporting for those with average total assets of $100 billion...more
The centralized repository would assist the CFPB and law enforcement in detecting patterns of misbehavior and recidivism adversely affecting consumers.
On June 3, 2024, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB)...more
FIT21 would provide regulatory certainty for the US digital asset ecosystem, balancing support for innovation with consumer protection....more
5/30/2024
/ Blockchain ,
CFTC ,
Commodities ,
Consumer Protection Laws ,
Cryptocurrency ,
Decentralized Finance (DeFi) ,
Digital Assets ,
FinTech ,
Investment Contract ,
Non-Fungible Tokens (NFTs) ,
Pending Legislation ,
Rulemaking Process ,
Securities ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Stablecoins
The proposal seeks to make executive compensation arrangements more sensitive to risk and would require complex risk management programs to ensure compliance....more
5/30/2024
/ Dodd-Frank ,
Executive Compensation ,
FDIC ,
FHFA ,
Financial Services Industry ,
Incentive Compensation ,
NCUA ,
NPRM ,
OCC ,
Proposed Rules ,
Risk Management
With regulators keeping close watch, the results underscore the need for ongoing climate risk management investment and adaptation within the financial sector.
On May 9, 2024, the Board of Governors of the Federal...more
The bipartisan bill seeks to foster innovation and promote US dollar dominance while protecting consumers and mitigating illicit finance risks.
On April 17, 2024, US Senators Cynthia Lummis from the Senate Banking...more
The preliminary injunction was granted pursuant to Fifth Circuit precedent that the CFPB’s independent funding structure is unconstitutional.
On May 10, 2024, the US District Court for the Northern District of Texas...more
As federal regulation remains patchy, firms may want to consider a New York state charter as a potential avenue to expand digital asset offerings in a compliant manner.
On March 22, 2024, WisdomTree, Inc., a global asset...more
4/5/2024
/ Custody ,
Digital Assets ,
Exemptions ,
Fiduciary ,
FinTech ,
Investment Management ,
Investment Trust Companies ,
Market Participants ,
Money Transmitter ,
NYDFS ,
OCC ,
Stablecoins ,
State Charters ,
Subsidiaries
The Proposal clarifies the FDIC’s bank merger approval process but may prove challenging for new large bank consolidations with the FDIC as the primary regulator.
On March 21, 2024, the Board of Directors of the Federal...more
4/4/2024
/ AML/CFT ,
Anti-Competitive ,
Anti-Money Laundering ,
Anti-Monopoly ,
Bank Merger Act ,
Bank Secrecy Act ,
Banks ,
Community Reinvestment Act ,
Dodd-Frank ,
FDIC ,
Industry Consolidation ,
Merger Reviews ,
Mergers ,
Policy Statement ,
Proposed Amendments ,
Public Comment ,
Risk Assessment
The legislation allows decentralized autonomous organizations to gain legal entity status and operate within the bounds of applicable law. ...more
4/2/2024
/ CFTC ,
Corporate Governance ,
Decentralized Autonomous Organization (DAO) ,
Ether ,
Ethereum ,
Governance Standards ,
Howey ,
Indemnification ,
Investment Contract ,
Legal Entities ,
Liability ,
Limited Liability ,
Market Participants ,
Membership Interest ,
Nonprofits ,
Securities Act of 1933 ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Service of Process
The rule targets a statutory loophole that the CFPB asserts large credit card issuers exploited to exact excessive late fees from consumers.
On March 5, 2024, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) finalized a...more
Banking agencies are alleged to have exceeded their congressional authorization, with potentially adverse consequences on banks and consumers.
On February 5, 2024, several banking trade groups[1] (the Plaintiffs) sued...more