Podcast: Is Cryptocurrency a Security (like an orange grove)?
The Staff clarifies that protocol staking does not qualify as a security under the Howey Test, clearing the way for market participants to engage in staking....more
Specifically, the SEC wants a change to persuade the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit – now, not later – of its view that Torres got it wrong when she determined that the company's offer and sale of its XRP token...more
The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission sued Coinbase, Inc., alleging the crypto assets Coinbase made available for trading on its exchange met the definition of “securities.” Because Coinbase did not register the assets...more
The SEC’s reliance on a nebulous US Supreme Court decision raises important questions for the future of decentralized finance. Reves v. Ernst & Young,[1] a 30-year-old US Supreme Court decision on farmers’ co-ops, is...more
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
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
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
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
The Situation: Federal prosecutors have asserted that two cryptocurrencies sold in initial coin offerings ("ICOs") are "securities" for purposes of federal securities laws in a criminal indictment alleging fraud against the...more
U.S. District Judge Raymond Dearie of the Eastern District of New York has ruled that initial coin offerings (ICOs) may be subject to securities law. The ruling came in the court’s denial of defendant Maksim Zaslavkiy’s...more
During a speech in San Francisco last week at the Yahoo Finance All Markets Summit, William Hinman, Director of the Division of Corporation Finance of the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), provided some welcome...more