Daily Compliance News: April 7, 2025, The Whistleblowers Awarded Edition
The Cayman Islands Government has taken a significant step in the regulation of virtual asset service providers (VASPs) with the commencement of the licensing regime under the Virtual Asset (Service Providers) Act (as...more
On 1 April 2025, several key updates will be made to the framework for the regulation of virtual assets in the Cayman Islands. These updates include the introduction and commencement of the VASP licencing framework for...more
The VASP Act defines “Virtual Assets” as digital representations of value that can be digitally traded or transferred and can be used for payment or investment purposes. Digital representations of fiat currencies (which is...more
In the First Edition of our Regulatory Disputes Series, digital assets and fintech topped our list of hot topics to watch for the future of offshore regulatory disputes. In this Fourth Edition, we provide an update on...more
The Cayman Islands Monetary Authority (“CIMA”) has issued a new Rule and Statement of Guidance on the obligations for the provision of virtual asset services – Virtual Asset Custodians and Trading Platforms (the “Rule”). With...more
Regulatory clarity in the digital assets and crypto space continues to be a moving target. Yet, the interest among policymakers and regulators worldwide has never been more pronounced. In the United States, 2024 was a pivotal...more
Following consultations earlier this year, the Virtual Asset (Service Providers) (Amendment) Bill, 2024 (the Bill) has been gazetted and represents a major milestone in enhancing the Cayman Islands’ regulatory landscape for...more
What is the Travel Rule? The virtual asset “Travel Rule”, formally known as the “Financial Action Task Force (FATF) Recommendation 16”, requires Virtual Asset Service Providers (VASPs) to share and hold specific customer...more
Chris Duncan and Alistair Russell have authored the Cayman Islands chapter of Global Legal Insight's sixth edition guide to blockchain and cryptocurrency regulation. The chapter covers the Cayman legal requirements relating...more
As the war continues to rage on the Eastern front between Russia and Ukraine, the financial sanctions resulting from the initial invasions and ongoing conflict seem likely to continue to play a significant part in the global...more
Our corporate team outline the latest developments within the corporate and finance market in Cayman including the amendments to the Beneficial Ownership Regime, winding up Cayman segregated portfolio companies, proposed...more
Cayman Foundation Companies are growing in popularity as a vehicle of choice for decentralised autonomous organisations (DAOs) to take on legal personality. In a landmark decision, the Hong Kong High Court recently...more
The evolution of the cryptocurrency landscape has led to the development and rapid adoption of stablecoins globally. A stablecoin, as the name suggests, is essentially a virtual asset that is designed to maintain a stable...more
In recent years, the virtual asset industry has experienced exponential growth, bringing about innovations in digital payments, tokenisation and decentralised finance (Defi). While highly innovative, the volatile nature of...more
As the global financial landscape continues to evolve, the rapid growth of virtual assets and use of blockchain technology has prompted governments worldwide to reassess their legal and regulatory frameworks. The emergence of...more
Welcome to the second instalment of 2024 of the Regulatory & Risk Advisory Review. In this edition we cover several Cayman Islands regulatory updates including updates to the Beneficial Ownership Transparency Act, the...more
The Cayman Islands Monetary Authority (“CIMA”) has issued a regulatory policy (the “Policy”) outlining the criteria for approving Registration or Licensing of Virtual Asset Service Providers (“VASPs”). The Policy applies to...more
Approaches and developments - The Cayman Islands has long been a leading offshore jurisdiction for investment funds, as well as a significant global financial centre overall. It is therefore not surprising that, reflecting...more
Our global investment funds teams work closely with the leading managers, instructing counsel and service providers around the world, giving us a unique perspective and insight into the trends and forces shaping financial...more
On January 26, the California Department of Financial Protection and Innovation (DFPI) announced that it entered into a $22.5 million settlement agreement with a Cayman Islands digital asset firm to resolve a securities...more
On January 19, the SEC charged a Cayman Islands digital asset firm for allegedly failing to register the offer and sale of its retail crypto-asset lending product. According to the SEC’s cease-and-desist order ...more
A recent report published by AIMA, the 4th AIMA Annual Global Crypto Hedge Fund Report 2022, highlighted the continued growth in the AUM being allocated to this asset class during 2021....more
Roadmap - As a starting point it is helpful to outline a roadmap of how a new blockchain based project might develop. It is important to stress that no two projects will ever have the same objectives. As such, there is no...more
It’s trite to say that 2020 was a year marked by change. Having being bombarded with a variety of unsolicited adjustments to our daily lives, we could be forgiven for having developed a collective fear of change over the last...more
U.S. Developments - Regulatory Developments - CFTC Announces Two Events Designed to Encourage FinTech Innovation - On June 27, 2019, the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (“CFTC”) announced two events designed to...more