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 Blockchain Bi-Weekly presented by the Polsinelli Blockchain+ team is a rundown of some of the key stories in the Web3, blockchain and crypto ecosystems curated by our attorneys navigating the intersections of code, smart...more
9/8/2023
/ Bitcoin ,
Blockchain ,
Coinbase ,
Criminal Prosecution ,
Cryptocurrency ,
Digital Assets ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Exchange-Traded Products ,
Financial Services Industry ,
First Amendment ,
Fourth Amendment ,
IRS ,
Non-Fungible Tokens (NFTs) ,
Pump and Dump ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Securities Regulation ,
Securities Violations ,
Smart Contracts ,
Tax Liability ,
Unregistered Securities
On February 9, 2023, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC”) charged Kraken with offering and selling Kraken’s Staking Program – its staking-as-a-service product – as an unregistered security. Kraken, more...more
2/16/2023
/ Blockchain ,
Cryptocurrency ,
Digital Assets ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Financial Services Industry ,
Investment Opportunities ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Securities Violations ,
Token Sales ,
Trading Platforms ,
Unregistered Securities
Late last month, SoluTech, Inc. and Nathan Pitruzello consented to a cease-and-desist order with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”). From April 2018 through March 2019, SoluTech, a technology start-up...more
10/9/2020
/ Cryptocurrency ,
Digital Assets ,
Digital Currency ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Financial Transactions ,
Initial Coin Offering (ICOs) ,
Investment Opportunities ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Securities Violations ,
Token Sales ,
Unregistered Securities
U.S. Securities and Exchange (SEC) Commissioner Hester Peirce, referred to by some as “crypto mom” for her support for blockchain technology and cryptocurrency, was nominated on June 3, to serve a five-year term. Peirce is...more
The SEC recently required BitClave to return over $25 million to investors which the company raised by selling its Consumer Activity Tokens (CAT) to over 9,000 investors in an initial coin offering (ICO). BitClave was also...more
With the world slowly coming out of the COVID-19 lock down and the economy hopefully on the path to recovery there have been many developments in the blockchain / crypto space over the last few weeks....more
5/19/2020
/ Bitcoin ,
Blockchain ,
CFTC ,
Cryptocurrency ,
Digital Assets ,
Digital Currency ,
FinTech ,
Fraudulent Investment ,
Initial Coin Offering (ICOs) ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Securities Fraud ,
Stock Exchange ,
Unregistered Securities ,
Virtual Currency
The SEC recently filed suit against Dropil, Inc. (“Dropil”), Jeremy McAlpine, Zachary Matar, and Patrick O’Hara, alleging the defendants had defrauded investors in an unregistered offerings of securities described by the...more
The SEC successfully landed another blow in its ongoing battle with Blockvest, LLC for alleged securities fraud and the sale of unregistered securities. ...more
Digital assets and Blockchain technologies which were once described as the tools of criminals, are now a key part of efforts by traditional financial services firms to transform their businesses and innovative firms looking...more
1/3/2020
/ Accredited Investors ,
Bitcoin ,
Blockchain ,
CFTC ,
Critical Infrastructure Sectors ,
Cryptocurrency ,
Digital Assets ,
Digital Currency ,
Distributed Ledger Technology (DLT) ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Facebook ,
Financial Services Industry ,
FinTech ,
Initial Coin Offering (ICOs) ,
Mark Zuckerberg ,
Martin Act ,
No-Action Letters ,
Offerings ,
Popular ,
Regulatory Requirements ,
Sanctions ,
Securities Act ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Securities Fraud ,
Securities Regulation ,
Simple Agreement for Future Tokens (SAFT) ,
Technology Sector ,
Token Sales ,
Transparency ,
Unregistered Securities ,
Virtual Currency
This summary covers the last two weeks which includes news about continued enforcement actions by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) involving fraudulent digital asset transactions, dismissal of a securities...more
10/2/2019
/ Bitcoin ,
Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) ,
Criminal Prosecution ,
Cryptocurrency ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Digital Assets ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Ether ,
Extortion ,
FBI ,
Financial Transactions ,
Initial Coin Offering (ICOs) ,
Innovative Technology ,
Investment Adviser ,
Legal Opinion ,
Offerings ,
Popular ,
Putative Class Actions ,
Regulatory Oversight ,
Rewards Programs ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Securities Violations ,
Startups ,
Token Sales ,
Unregistered Brokers ,
Unregistered Securities ,
Virtual Currency
Last week was a busy one for the SEC, and other crypto related litigation. That’s probably all we’re going to get while the battle between regulators and token issuers rages on, as Congress is not in session and many in the...more