On Aug. 7, the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York issued its judgment in U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission v. Ripple Labs, Inc., marking the end of district court- level proceedings in the highly...more
8/12/2024
/ Civil Monetary Penalty ,
Corporate Counsel ,
Cryptocurrency ,
Digital Assets ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Pending Litigation ,
Permanent Injunctions ,
Popular ,
Ripple ,
Securities Act of 1933 ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Securities Violations ,
Summary Judgment ,
Unregistered Securities
On Thursday, June 27, the Supreme Court, in a 6-3 decision, held that the Seventh Amendment entitles a defendant to a jury trial in instances where the SEC seeks civil penalties against that defendant for alleged securities...more
7/3/2024
/ Administrative Authority ,
Administrative Law Judge (ALJ) ,
Administrative Proceedings ,
Civil Monetary Penalty ,
Constitutional Challenges ,
Dodd-Frank ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Jury Trial ,
SCOTUS ,
SEC v Jarkesy ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Securities Fraud ,
Securities Regulation ,
Seventh Amendment
On April 2 and 3, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC or Commission) presented its annual SEC Speaks program in conjunction with PLI, where senior members of the Commission provided updates on the current...more
The new flexible work environment created in the post-pandemic years poses unique challenges for companies and individuals who work outside a traditional office. The SEC knows this and is actively enforcing the securities...more
Financial Services Firms Expand Cryptocurrency Custody Services -
According to recent reports, the cryptocurrency custody arm of a major international bank has launched its institutional cryptocurrency custody services in...more
9/18/2023
/ Blockchain ,
Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) ,
CFTC ,
Crypto Exchanges ,
Cryptocurrency ,
Decentralized Finance (DeFi) ,
Digital Assets ,
Enforcement Actions ,
FBI ,
Hackers ,
IOSCO ,
Non-Fungible Tokens (NFTs) ,
Popular ,
Ripple ,
Scams ,
Securities ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Theft ,
Virtual Currency ,
Wash Trades
SWIFT Publishes Blockchain Pilot Findings; Firms Announce USDC Integrations -
According to a recent press release, the Society for Worldwide Interbank Financial Telecommunication (Swift) recently published a report with...more
9/11/2023
/ Accounting Standards ,
AML/CFT ,
Asia Pacific ,
Bitcoin ,
Blockchain ,
Crypto Exchanges ,
Cryptocurrency ,
Digital Assets ,
Enforcement Actions ,
ETFs ,
Fair Market Value ,
FASB ,
FATF ,
Financial Stability Board ,
Hong Kong ,
Information Reports ,
International Monetary Fund ,
Popular ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC)
The settlements announced by the SEC and CFTC on Monday are a continuation of the regulators’ focus on off-channel communications by employees of registered entities....more
8/11/2023
/ Books & Records ,
Bring Your Own Device (BYOD) ,
Broker-Dealer ,
CFTC ,
Civil Monetary Penalty ,
Commodity Exchange Act (CEA) ,
Data Preservation ,
Data Retention ,
Electronic Communications ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Financial Services Industry ,
Hedge Funds ,
Mobile Apps ,
Private Equity ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Securities Exchange Act ,
Settlement ,
Swap Dealers
Long-awaited enforcement actions may be coming soon for those who took advantage of the lucrative tax breaks offered by the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico without meeting the requirements. Prosecutions may also follow for...more
7/27/2023
/ Criminal Investigations ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Enforcement ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Investigations ,
IRS ,
Puerto Rico ,
Relief Measures ,
Residency Requirements ,
Tax Avoidance ,
Tax Exemptions ,
Technology Sector ,
Voluntary Disclosure
On May 1, 2023, the New York State Department of Financial Services (DFS or Department) issued a consent order (Consent Order), imposing a $1.2 million fine on bitFlyer USA, a cryptocurrency trading platform and custodial...more
5/17/2023
/ BitLicense ,
Compliance ,
Consent Order ,
Crypto Exchanges ,
Cryptocurrency ,
Cybersecurity ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Enforcement Priorities ,
Financial Regulatory Agencies ,
Licenses ,
Licensing Rules ,
NYDFS
On Wednesday, March 1 the Department of Justice (DOJ) announced its first-ever prosecution of an individual for insider trading based on an executive’s use of 10b5-1 trading plans. Terren Peizer, the executive chairman of...more
3/8/2023
/ 10b5-1 Plans ,
Amended Regulation ,
Criminal Prosecution ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Disclosure Requirements ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Form 8-K ,
Indictments ,
Insider Information ,
Insider Trading ,
Popular ,
Securities ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Securities Fraud
Mango Markets is a decentralized cryptocurrency exchange that allows users to purchase and borrow cryptocurrencies and cryptocurrency-related financial products. Mango Markets is run by the Mango Decentralized Autonomous...more
2/27/2023
/ CFTC ,
Criminal Prosecution ,
Cryptoassets ,
Cryptocurrency ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Digital Platforms ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Fraud ,
Market Manipulation ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Trading Platforms ,
Wire Fraud
The SEC’s Complaint -
According to the SEC’s complaint, Kraken offered and sold its staking services to the general public in which participants could transfer crypto assets to Kraken in exchange for “advertised annual...more
Paper Explores Benefits of DeFi for FX; Australian Bank Launches Stablecoin -
A recent industry paper found that DeFi can reduce costs and enhance transparency in foreign exchange (FX) markets. The paper concludes that...more
1/23/2023
/ Blockchain ,
Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) ,
Cryptocurrency ,
Decentralized Autonomous Organization (DAO) ,
Decentralized Finance (DeFi) ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Digital Assets ,
Enforcement Actions ,
FinCEN ,
Online Platforms ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Stablecoins
On January 4, 2023, the New York State Department of Financial Services (“DFS”) announced that Coinbase, Inc., a major U.S. cryptocurrency exchange, will pay a $50 million penalty and invest an additional $50 million in its...more
1/17/2023
/ Anti-Money Laundering ,
Bank Secrecy Act ,
Coinbase ,
Compliance ,
Consent Order ,
Crypto Exchanges ,
Customer Due Diligence (CDD) ,
Cybersecurity ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Government Investigations ,
Know Your Customers ,
Money Transmitter ,
NYDFS ,
Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) ,
Regulatory Violations ,
Settlement ,
Statutory Violations ,
Virtual Currency
New Data Published on 2022 Crypto Exchange Trading Volume, NFT Royalties -
According to recent reports, Binance, currently the world’s largest cryptocurrency exchange by trading volume, controlled 92 percent of global...more
1/16/2023
/ CFTC ,
Criminal Investigations ,
Criminal Prosecution ,
Crypto Exchanges ,
Cryptoassets ,
Cryptocurrency ,
Data-Sharing ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Digital Assets ,
Digital Currency ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Non-Fungible Tokens (NFTs) ,
Popular ,
Royalties
Takeaways:
..The Court granted the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission’s (the SEC) motion for summary judgment, holding that LBC tokens are securities and that the offers and sales of the tokens by LBRY, Inc. (LBRY)...more
On October 11, 2022, the U.S. Department of the Treasury’s Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) and Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) announced a $29 million civil monetary penalty against Bittrex, a...more
10/25/2022
/ Bank Secrecy Act ,
BSA/AML ,
Civil Monetary Penalty ,
Compliance ,
Consent Order ,
Crypto Exchanges ,
Cryptocurrency ,
Enforcement Actions ,
FinCEN ,
Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) ,
Statutory Violations
New Crypto Products Launch in Custody, Cloud Collaborations and Stablecoins -
This week, a major U.S. financial institution announced that its Digital Asset Custody platform is now live in the United States. According to...more
10/17/2022
/ Bitcoin ,
Blockchain ,
Crypto Exchanges ,
Cryptocurrency ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Digital Currency ,
Distributed Ledger Technology (DLT) ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Financial Stability Board ,
FinCEN ,
Fines ,
Government Investigations ,
Hackers ,
Non-Fungible Tokens (NFTs) ,
OECD ,
Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Stablecoins ,
Statutory Violations
Takeaways -
..U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC, or Commission) Chair Gary Gensler reaffirmed his view that the “vast majority” of cryptocurrency tokens are securities, and recent agency enforcement actions...more
On July 25, 2022, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC or the Commission) made headlines announcing insider trading charges against 10 individuals across four separate cases, signaling an increased and renewed focus on...more
Significant parallel actions commenced this week by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and the Department of Justice (DOJ) bring crypto fraud enforcement into the spotlight, with the SEC alleging that multiple...more
7/25/2022
/ Coinbase ,
Criminal Prosecution ,
Cryptoassets ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Digital Wallets ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Ethereum ,
Howey ,
Illegal Tipping ,
Indictments ,
Insider Trading ,
Material Nonpublic Information ,
Proposed Rules ,
Rule 10(b) ,
Rule 10b-5 ,
Rulemaking Process ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Securities Exchange Act ,
Securities Tokens ,
Securities Violations
Sports Teams and Messaging Apps Go All-In on NFTs, Potential Hack
Foiled -
A major U.S. football team has reportedly inked a lucrative sponsorship deal with a popular digital asset platform. According to reports, the...more
4/18/2022
/ ATMs ,
Bitcoin ,
Blockchain ,
Cryptocurrency ,
Digital Assets ,
Enforcement Actions ,
FinTech ,
Hackers ,
Non-Fungible Tokens (NFTs) ,
Popular ,
Regulatory Agenda
Key Takeaways -
..The court denied Ripple’s senior executives’ motions to dismiss, finding that the SEC had met its pleading burden.
..The court also denied the SEC’s motion to strike Ripple’s fair-notice affirmative...more
Traditional Financial Firms Expand Reach into Cryptocurrency Sphere -
Early this week, a major investment bank announced that it plans to launch a digital asset custody platform later this year. This announcement follows...more
3/7/2022
/ Charitable Donations ,
Cryptocurrency ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Digital Assets ,
Donations ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Enforcement Priorities ,
FATF ,
Non-Fungible Tokens (NFTs) ,
Ponzi Scheme ,
Popular ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Ukraine
As one of its latest enforcement actions, the Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC” or “Commission”) continued its push into the fintech space by charging an alternative data provider with securities fraud for the first...more