- DFS Crypto “Coin Listing” Proposal Represents A Dramatic Expansion of the NY BitLicense [2020-01-15] - The comments below are in response to the New York DFS’s new proposed Coin Listing Policy Framework (the “Proposal” or the “Framework”) extension to the DFS Part 200 (the “BitLicense”) regulation, released on 12/11/2019 (available here. The DFS has provided only until January 27, 2020 to get comments in to innovation@dfs.ny.gov, so please read the …
- A Tale of Two Token Offerings: Lessons from Blockstack (Reg A+) And Telegram (Reg D) [2019-11-18] - (*) Some of the biggest news of the past half-year on the US crypto regulatory front has been (1) Blockstack’s successful (qualified) “Reg A+” filing with the SEC and associated offering, and (2) the SEC’s lawsuit and injunction against Telegram, blocking distribution of their “Grams” tokens, sold pursuant to earlier “SAFTs” (Simple Agreements for Future …
- “Decentralized” No More — SEC Drops Proposed Blockchain Test? [2019-04-06] - Another takeaway of mine from the SEC’s April 3rd releases was noting a striking shift in gears from the SEC. Namely, there was a conspicuous lack of emphasis on the “degree of decentralization” of blockchain token-issuers as applied to the security-vs-utility analysis of their tokens (I didn’t mention this in my earlier post, to keep …
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- Initial Impressions On The SEC’s Big “Digital Asset Framework” and Token No-Action Letter Releases [2019-04-04] - Important note: While I have read both of the releases discussed below in full, the following still represents a “first take”, and in any case, does not constitute legal advice. Yesterday was a big day in blockchain legal news, as the SEC put out two releases (combined here) that arguably constitute the biggest advances in …
- No, Airdrops Weren’t Just “Legalized” in the U.S. [2018-12-10] - A November 27, 2018 order in the case of ICO-gone-wrong SEC v. BlockVest, LLC (SoCal U.S. District Court), caused quite a buzz, for the ostensible holding that it (tentatively, of course, as this was not a final order) deemed the “airdrop” method of token distribution (i.e., free giveaways) permissible in the U.S. The order denied an …
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- House Financial Services – Monetary Policy and Trade Subcommittee Hearing (7/18/18): “The Future of Money: Digital Currency” [2018-07-23] - Below is a rough auto-transcript of a hearing held last week entitled “The Future of Money: Digital Currency” (video available at previous link). The witnesses were: Dr. Rodney J. Garratt, Maxwell C. and Mary Pellish Chair, Professor of Economics, University of California Santa Barbara Dr. Norbert J. Michel, Director, Center for Data Analysis, The Heritage …
- House Agricultural Committee Hearing (7/18/18): “Cryptocurrencies: Oversight of New Assets in the Digital Age” [2018-07-23] - Below is a rough auto-transcript of a hearing held last week entitled “Cryptocurrencies: Oversight of New Assets in the Digital Age” (video available at link). The witnesses were: Mr. Joshua Fairfield, William Donald Bain Family Professor of Law, Washington and Lee University School of Law, Staunton, VA Ms. Amber Baldet, Co-Founder and CEO, Clovyr, New …
- Doubts Emerge Regarding SEC Director Hinman’s “Decentralization” Token Security-Criteria [2018-07-08] - On June 14th, 2018, at the Yahoo! Finance All Markets Summit, the SEC’s Director of the Corporate Finance Division, William Hinman, made a “speech heard ’round the world” — best known for its bombshell conclusion that Ether coin (or “ETH”, of the Ethereum blockchain network) should not be considered a security [1]. While this sort …
- House Financial Services Subcommittee Hearing: Cryptocurrencies and Illicit Financing (6/20/18) [2018-06-21] - Below is a rough auto-transcript of a hearing held yesterday entitled “Illicit Use of Virtual Currency and the Law Enforcement Response”. The House Financial Services Subcommittee had officials from USCIS (ICE), FinCEN (Treasury) and the Secret Service on the stand, ostensibly to testify on the above-titled topic. However, due to the contemporaneous border family separation …
- Congress Members Push Back Against SEC; Promise To Introduce Utility Token/SAFT-friendly U.S. Legislation [2018-05-20] - A routine House Financial Services Committee hearing held on May 16th, 2018, turned eventful when a number of U.S. Congressional representatives sprung “initial coin offering” (ICO-related) questions on SEC officials — most of them from a more positive and supportive perspective than the SEC’s Chairman Jay Clayton has evinced in his comments directed at the …
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