Securities Exchange Act, Digital Assets, Blockchain

Bitnomial Exchange Sues SEC, Challenging Agency's Authority Over XRP Futures

Katten Muchin Rosenman LLP on 10/14/2024

Bitnomial Exchange, LLC (Bitnomial), a designated contract market (DCM) registered with the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC), has launched a legal offensive against the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC),...more

Binance Ruling Spotlights Muddled Post-Morrison Landscape

WilmerHale on 5/3/2024

The March decision in Williams v. Binance from the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit marks the latest chapter in the judiciary's struggle to apply the U.S. Supreme Court's 2010 decision in Morrison v. National...more

The SEC’s Second NFT Enforcement Action: SEC v. Stoner Cats 2

Akin Gump Strauss Hauer & Feld LLP on 9/15/2023

Key Point - Just over two weeks after the SEC announced the settlement of its first NFT enforcement action against Impact Theory, on September 13, 2023, the SEC announced its second NFT enforcement action against SC2, the...more

SEC orders crypto ATM operator to pay $3.9 million for selling unregistered tokens

Orrick, Herrington & Sutcliffe LLP on 5/8/2023

On April 28, the SEC settled with a cryptocurrency ATM operator for allegedly selling unregistered tokens in order to raise money to expand its bitcoin ATM network. Described as a “token sale,” the SEC claimed the respondents...more

Blockchain Week in Review - July 2021

Perkins Coie on 7/26/2021

European Central Bank announces the investigation phase of a digital Euro project. SEC charges Coinschedule.com with unlawfully touting digital asset securities. Federal court order permanently bans PaxForex and imposes a...more

Ripple Effect: SEC Lawsuit against Cryptocurrency Company May Provide Guidance For Crypto Industry

Amundsen Davis LLC on 3/12/2021

On December 21, 2020, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) filed a high-profile enforcement action against a major cryptocurrency company. The SEC complaint alleges violations of federal securities laws by defendant...more

Digital asset securities: broker-dealer custody issues

Eversheds Sutherland (US) LLP on 1/13/2021

As 2020 came to a close, the issue of how digital asset securities can be custodied by US broker-dealers became clearer, at least from a regulatory standpoint. In a release issued pursuant to the Securities Exchange Act of...more

SEC Issues Guidance for Broker-Dealer Custody of Digital Assets

Latham & Watkins LLP on 1/13/2021

In a year-end change of course, the SEC identified the minimum steps that broker-dealers must take when acting as custodians of digital asset securities. On December 23, 2020, the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC)...more

Blockchain Week in Review - January 2020 #3

Perkins Coie on 1/29/2020

U.S. Developments - Federal and State Regulatory Developments - Bill in Hawaii State Senate Addresses Digital Assets Including Authorization for Banks to Serve as Qualified Custodians - SB 2594 before the Hawaii...more

2019 Digital Asset Regulatory Look Back (US Edition)

Latham & Watkins LLP on 1/9/2020

It was a year filled with tantalizing tidbits and many loose ends. 2019 marked the 10th year since blockchain technology was released into the wild by its still unknown inventor, Satoshi Nakamoto, who mined the first bitcoin...more

Blockchain Week in Review - December 2019

Perkins Coie on 12/23/2019

U.S. Legislation - U.S. House Bill Seeks Classification of “Managed Stablecoins” as “Securities” - Texas Representative Sylvia Garcia introduced legislation in the U.S. House of Representatives that would amend the...more

SEC No-Action Letter Opens the Door to Innovation for Securities Clearance and Settlement

WilmerHale on 11/1/2019

On October 28, 2019, Paxos Trust Company, LLC (Paxos) received a time-limited (two-year) No-Action Letter from the Division of Trading and Markets of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). This No-Action Letter...more

A Question To The SEC After The Block.One Settlement: Has The Sec Decided To Be Less Aggressive In Sanctioning Violations By...

Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati on 10/18/2019

Until September 30, 2019, Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) enforcement actions in the crypto industry conveyed a consistent message: most crypto is a security, and if a token issuer does not follow the registration...more

SEC and FINRA Staffs Jointly Address Broker-Dealer Custody of Digital Asset Securities

Dechert LLP on 8/12/2019

The Staffs of the Securities and Exchange Commission’s Division of Trading and Markets and the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority’s Office of General Counsel (jointly, Staffs) issued a Joint Statement on July 8, 2019...more

The SEC Takes Aim at Another Initial Coin Offering

McDermott Will & Emery on 6/13/2019

A recent complaint concerning KIK Interactive Inc. filed in the US District Court of the Southern District of New York reveals some SEC priorities for cryptocurrency enforcement actions. The complaint indicates that the SEC...more

The Current State of Cryptocurrency Enforcement and Securities Litigation

Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom LLP on 4/30/2019

On April 24, 2019, Skadden hosted a webinar titled “The Current State of Cryptocurrency Enforcement and Securities Litigation.” The presented topics largely focused on the SEC’s evolving regulatory approach to cryptocurrency...more

SEC Gives Guidance on Securities Analysis for Digital Assets

Proskauer Rose LLP on 4/26/2019

TurnKey No-Action Letter and Framework Publication - The Securities and Exchange Commission ("SEC") recently issued highly anticipated guidance to assist market participants in determining whether a digital asset is...more

Warning Shot: Charges Against OneCoin Include Securities Fraud

Proskauer - Blockchain and the Law on 4/26/2019

In early March, the Manhattan U.S. Attorney unsealed indictments against the leaders of the Bulgarian-based “purported” cryptocurrency “OneCoin” on wire fraud, money laundering and federal securities fraud charges relating to...more

Token Taxonomy Act – Exempting Digital Tokens from U.S. Securities Laws

Locke Lord LLP on 4/25/2019

On April 10, 2019, U.S. Representatives Warren Davidson (R-OH) and Darren Soto (D-FL) reintroduced the Token Taxonomy Act (“TTA”) in the effort to amend the Securities Act of 1933 and the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 to...more

The Distributed Ledger: Blockchain, Digital Assets and Smart Contracts - April 2019

Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom LLP on 4/16/2019

In this issue, we examine the release of the much-anticipated Strategic Hub for Innovation and Financial Technology (FinHub) guidance for analyzing how U.S. federal securities laws apply to initial coin offerings, the...more

The SEC and Digital Assets—A Busy Year End

Perkins Coie on 12/21/2018

The end of the year has been a very busy time for the SEC in the digital asset space. From speeches to the issuance of joint statements to enforcement actions, there are many things to highlight, discuss and consider. This...more

Crypto Firms Make Inroads with State and Federal Regulators

Sheppard Mullin Richter & Hampton LLP on 10/31/2018

Over the past couple of years, the crypto industry has come under heavy scrutiny from skeptical regulators seeking to root out fraud and protect investors amid the initial coin offering boom that generated over $4 billion in...more

SEC to ICO Players: Our Game, Our Rules

Schwabe, Williamson & Wyatt PC on 9/13/2017

On July 25, 2017, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC”) published an investigative report (the “Report”) cautioning market participants that the offer and sale of digital assets such as “coins” or “tokens,”...more

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