Earlier this week, the financial services company Robinhood, which caters to retail investors, rolled out its derivative market for trading on the outcome of the upcoming United States presidential election. These trades are...more
On February 6, 2024, the SEC adopted new rules under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 (Exchange Act), to expand the scope of “dealers” and “government securities dealers” required to register under the Exchange Act, become...more
Last week, the CFTC updated its large trader position reporting rules for futures and options. First proposed in June 2023, this much-needed change modernizes a rule that had gone largely unchanged since the 1980s....more
Each month we publish a roundup of the most important SEC enforcement developments for busy in-house lawyers and compliance professionals. This month, we examine: •The SEC’s expanded definition of securities dealers; - •An...more
The European Union Digital Services Act (DSA) now applies to all digital “intermediary services” that provide users with access to online goods, services, and content. The DSA took effect on November 16, 2022, and regulates a...more
The U.S. Commodity Futures Commission (CFTC) is one of the main regulators engaged in the cryptocurrency space. Between the first quarter of 2015 and the second quarter of 2023, the CFTC brought 100 actions against virtual...more
On July 11, 2023, the Senate Finance Committee released an open letter to the Digital Asset Community asking a variety of questions in connection with possible future legislation. Public comments must be emailed to the Senate...more
While it is nearly a year into the post-Brexit chemicals regulatory regime, the infrastructure to accommodate UK REACH registrations is not yet running smoothly and as a result importers and distributors of chemical...more
The past has a way of repeating itself. In 1909, the New York Supreme Court declined to enforce a contract to manipulate stock prices (which was successful), with payments due to a publisher of an investment newsletter...more
The United States Securities and Exchange Commission recently charged two individuals— Florida residents, Suyun Gu, and his friend, Yong Lee—for their involvement in allegedly fraudulent wash sales involving out-of-the-money...more
Investigators with the U.S. Department of Justice reportedly are investigating energy pricing benchmarks published by Platts, targeting suspected manipulation of deal prices provided by individual traders. According to...more
In the last five years, the Justice Department and the Commodities Futures Trading Commission have aggressively prosecuted “spoofing” cases. While the government’s record in these cases has been mixed, the government has...more
The Securities and Exchange Commission’s Office of Compliance Inspections and Examinations issued a National Exam Program Risk Alert on June 18, 2020 (Risk Alert), which introduces an examination initiative on the upcoming...more
Traders in virtual currency seeking to deduct trading losses and avoid application of the capital loss limitations would want to elect into the special tax rules found at I.R.C. § 475(f). However, such taxpayers should...more
Stakers—taxpayers involved in proof of stake (PoS) validation of blockchain transactions—are operating in uncharted tax waters. Treasury and the IRS have provided no guidance regarding when or whether staking rewards are...more
If a taxpayer’s virtual currency activities are too infrequent to rise to the level of investment activities or do not qualify as trader or dealer activities, losses associated with virtual currency transactions are not...more
This note sets out at a high level the potential impact of the United Kingdom’s (“UK”) exit (“Brexit”) from the European Union (“EU”) without a negotiated agreement on UK and European Economic Area (“EEA”) (a) alternative...more
MAS hopes to strengthen controls on market abuse with new client identification and record keeping requirements for FIs. Key Points: ..In August 2019, the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) proposed four new...more
Financial institutions M&A sector trends: brokers/trading service providers — H1 2019 and outlook for H2 2019. CURRENT MARKET - Consistent, high activity levels...more
As part of our periodic updates, here is an overview of recent developments of relevance to participants in the real estate finance market across certain key jurisdictions in Europe....more
In November of last year, the Securities and Exchange Commission's Office of Compliance Inspections and Examinations issued an alert announcing a series of risk-based examinations focused on mutual funds and exchange-traded...more
This issue of Skadden’s semiannual Cross-Border Investigations Update takes a close look at recent cases, regulatory activity and other key developments, including DOJ guidance on the use of corporate monitors in criminal...more
Due to the inherent structure of cryptocurrency trading most users consider their transactions completely anonymous. The Internal Revenue Service (“IRS”) estimates three million individuals transact in cryptocurrency each...more