Throughout a tumultuous 2022, the digital currency and blockchain space saw a number of significant investigation, litigation, and enforcement matters as regulators continue their laser focus on the industry. This Year in...more
2/14/2023
/ Bankruptcy Court ,
Blockchain ,
Crypto Exchanges ,
Cryptocurrency ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Digital Assets ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Insider Trading ,
Non-Fungible Tokens (NFTs) ,
Popular ,
Stablecoins ,
Unregistered Securities
On August 15, 2022, the United States District Court for the Central District of California authorized the IRS to serve a “John Doe” summons on Ox Labs Inc., a cryptocurrency prime dealer doing business as SFOX....more
On July 12, 2022, Twitter, Inc. brought a civil action in the Delaware Court of Chancery against Elon Musk, the co-founder and CEO of Tesla Motors, Inc., for breach of contract in an attempt to force Musk to complete his...more
7/28/2022
/ Acquisitions ,
Attorney-Client Privilege ,
Breach of Contract ,
Class Action ,
Criminal Convictions ,
Cryptoassets ,
Cryptocurrency ,
Discovery Disputes ,
Elon Musk ,
Gaming ,
Insider Trading ,
Merger Agreements ,
Securities ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Securities Exchange Act ,
Securities Fraud ,
Specific Performance ,
Spoofing ,
Twitter
On April 27, 2022, the Delaware Court of Chancery in In re Tesla Motors Stockholder Litigation rendered a post-trial verdict finding for Elon Musk, co-founder and CEO of Tesla Motors, Inc., on claims that Musk breached his...more
5/18/2022
/ Acquisitions ,
Breach of Contract ,
Broadband ,
Business Judgment Rule ,
Charter Communications ,
Controlling Stockholders ,
Cryptocurrency ,
Delaware General Corporation Law ,
Elon Musk ,
Fiduciary Duty ,
Institutional Investors ,
Mergers ,
Popular ,
Putative Class Actions ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Shareholder Litigation ,
Shareholders ,
Tesla ,
Time Warner ,
Twitter
On March 10, 2022, the U.S. Department of Labor (“DOL”) issued a Compliance Assistance Release (the “Release”) addressing its views on the availability of cryptocurrencies on 401(k) investment platforms. This guidance comes...more
5/13/2022
/ 401k ,
Benefit Plan Sponsors ,
Bitcoin ,
Cryptocurrency ,
Department of Labor (DOL) ,
Digital Assets ,
Fiduciary ,
Fiduciary Duty ,
Investment Opportunities ,
Plan Participants ,
Retirement Plan ,
Securities ,
Securities Regulation
District Court Denies Payday Lender's Bid To Dismiss SEC Enforcement Action; Delaware Chancery Court Dismisses Camping World Insider Trading Derivative Suit; California Federal Judge Certifies Class Of Apple Common-Stock...more
3/14/2022
/ Apple ,
Cease and Desist Orders ,
Class Certification ,
Common Stock ,
Cryptocurrency ,
Derivative Suit ,
Dismissals ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Fines ,
Insider Trading ,
Investment Company Act of 1940 ,
Investors ,
iPhone ,
Lenders ,
Misleading Statements ,
Misrepresentation ,
Payday Loans ,
Penalties ,
Promissory Notes ,
Proposed Amendments ,
Publicly-Traded Companies ,
Registration Requirement ,
Securities Act of 1933 ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Securities Exchange Act ,
Securities Transactions ,
Securities Violations ,
Stock Options ,
Whistleblower Awards ,
Whistleblowers
IN THIS ISSUE -
Eleventh Circuit Overturns Dismissal of Cryptocurrency Ponzi Scheme Class Action Suit; Federal Court of Appeals Dismisses Leading Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac Shareholder Lawsuits; NY Seeks Blockchain...more
3/9/2022
/ Appeals ,
Attorney's Fees ,
Banking Sector ,
Blockchain ,
Breach of Duty ,
Cannabis-Related Businesses (CRBs) ,
Civil Conspiracy ,
Class Action ,
Cryptocurrency ,
Department of Financial Services ,
Derivative Suit ,
Dismissals ,
Economic Sanctions ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Fannie Mae ,
Fiduciary Duty ,
Financial Services Industry ,
Freddie Mac ,
Investors ,
Mergers ,
Mootness Fee Applications ,
Ponzi Scheme ,
Popular ,
Reversal ,
Russia ,
Securities Act of 1933 ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Securities Exchange Act ,
Securities Fraud ,
Securities Litigation ,
Shareholder Litigation ,
Shareholders ,
Supplemental Disclosures ,
Tortious Interference ,
Virtual Currency
The U.S. Securities & Exchange Commission (“SEC”) filed a complaint against Ripple Labs, Inc. (“Ripple”) and two of its executives, Brad Garlinghouse and Chris Larsen, on December 22, 2020 in the U.S. District Court for the...more
1/26/2021
/ Blockchain ,
Corporate Executives ,
Cryptocurrency ,
Digital Assets ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Popular ,
Ripple ,
Section 5 ,
Securities Act of 1933 ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Securities Violations ,
Unregistered Securities
On October 8, 2020, the Attorney General’s Cyber Digital Task Force announced the release of a publication entitled Cryptocurrency: An Enforcement Framework (the “Enforcement Framework”). The Enforcement Framework describes...more
10/12/2020
/ Anti-Money Laundering ,
CFTC ,
Cryptocurrency ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Digital Assets ,
Enforcement Authority ,
Financial Institutions ,
Jurisdiction ,
Money Laundering ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Tax Avoidance
In a recent decision in Securities and Exchange Commission v. Telegram Group Inc. and TON Issuer Inc., the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York granted a motion for a preliminary injunction by...more
Meghan Spillane is a partner in Goodwin’s Securities Litigation and White Collar Defense group, and a member of its Digital Currency + Blockchain Technology practice. She specializes in advising companies on regulations...more