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
With effect from 1 April 2025, the licensing regime under the VASP Act will be implemented, requiring those providing virtual asset custody services or operating virtual asset trading platforms to obtain a licence under the...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 28 January 2025 judgment in Bradley & anor v Frye-Chaikin [2025] CIGC (Civ) 5, the Grand Court of the Cayman Islands addressed the use of Artificial Intelligence (AI) by a party in the preparation of written...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
2024 was once again an active year for the Cayman Islands regulatory industry. In this edition of our Regulatory & Risk Advisory Outlook, our team has summarised the key changes and news during 2024 and taken a look at the...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
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
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
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
Walkers' regulatory partners Lucy Frew and Ian Mason consider the learning points for financial services providers (FSPs) from recent enforcement actions by Cayman regulatory bodies. While financial services and related...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
Cayman Foundation Companies are booming in popularity. Statistics from the Register of Companies have shown a significant uptick in registrations in recent months. 2021 saw 281 per cent year-on-year growth in the...more
Cayman Islands foundation companies (Cayman Foundations) are increasingly being utilised as popular structuring vehicles in the sector. Although Cayman Foundations may initially have been intended to attract high-net-worth...more
After weeks of “backlash over a lack of transparency,” the Treasury Department has agreed to make public information detailing “borrower information for recipients of millions of small-business loans through the $660 billion...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