On September 13, 2021, New York Attorney General Letitia James announced the entry of a default judgment against crypto platform Coinseed and its CEO. The default judgment includes broad injunctive relief against Coinseed’s future operations in New York state. The case is one of many that regulators have recently brought against crypto trading platforms.
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Scott H. Kimpel
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CFTC Commissioner Summarizes Authority Over Digital Assets
By Scott H. Kimpel on
Posted in Regulatory
On August 23, 2021, CFTC Commissioner Dawn Stump released a helpful primer on the CFTC’s regulatory authority over digital assets.…
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Regulators Continue Crackdown on Crypto Exchanges
By Scott H. Kimpel on
Posted in Regulatory
In a settled enforcement case announced August 9, 2021, the SEC fined Poloniex, LLC, a crypto trading platform, for operating an unregistered securities exchange. Then, on August 10, 2021, the CFTC and FinCEN announced a settled enforcement case against crypto exchange BitMEX for anti-money laundering violations and failure to register with the CFTC as a trading platform. The cases highlight US regulators’ increased focus on cryptocurrency exchanges.…
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New Jersey Orders DeFi Platform to Cease Offering Interest-Bearing Crypto Accounts
By Scott H. Kimpel on
Posted in Cryptocurrencies, Regulatory
On July 20, 2021, New Jersey’s Acting Attorney General announced that the State’s Bureau of Securities issued a Summary Cease and Desist Order to stop BlockFi, Inc. from selling unregistered securities in the form of interest-bearing cryptocurrency accounts. While commentators frequently focus on the enforcement activities of the Securities and Exchange Commission in the crypto space, New Jersey’s action against DeFi platform BlockFi serves as a reminder that state securities regulators also actively police this marketplace.…
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House Financial Services Committee Forms Digital Asset Working Group
By Scott H. Kimpel on
Posted in Regulatory
Congresswoman Maxine Waters (D-CA), Chairwoman of the House Committee on Financial Services, recently announced the organization of the Committee’s Digital Assets Working Group. …
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SEC Staff Issues Statement on Bitcoin Futures
By Scott H. Kimpel on
Posted in Cryptocurrencies, Regulatory
On May 11, 2021, staff in the Division of Investment Management (IM) at the Securities and Exchange Commission issued a statement (the Statement) on “Funds Registered Under the Investment Company Act Investing in the Bitcoin Futures Market.” The Statement provides a series of warnings to retail investors about certain risks associated with investments in registered mutual funds whose portfolios include Bitcoin futures. But the Statement also provides further insight into the way SEC staff analyze the market for Bitcoin Futures more broadly.…
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SEC Chairman Testifies About Digital Assets
By Scott H. Kimpel on
Posted in Cryptocurrencies, Regulatory
In a wide-ranging hearing before the House Financial Services Committee on May 6, 2021, SEC Chairman Gary Gensler answered a series of questions on cryptocurrency and digital asset regulation. His statements begin to shed some light on Chairman Gensler’s official approach to regulating digital asset securities. …
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Rulemaking Petition Seeks SEC Guidance on NFTs
By Scott H. Kimpel on
Posted in Regulatory
A recent rulemaking petition to the SEC requests that the agency issue a concept release on nonfungible tokens, or NFTs. The petition is hopeful that an SEC rulemaking paired with an opportunity for public input will resolve regulatory uncertainty for parties looking to create NFTs and facilitate their sale.…
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The Nonfungible Token
By Scott H. Kimpel on
Posted in Regulatory
A recent Bloomberg article reported that average prices for nonfungible tokens, or NFTs, are down approximately 70 percent from recent highs. A wide range of NFTs have begun to enter the marketplace over the past several months. A digital work of art represented by an NFT recently sold at auction for over $69 million, and even a professional sports league has begun to issue NFTs. A fascinating debate about the social and economic utility of NFTs has emerged, but what are some of the legal issues associated with this new digital asset class?…
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New York Attorney General Announces Settlement with Bitfinex
By Scott H. Kimpel on
Posted in Crypto Exchanges, Regulatory
As we previously reported, the New York Attorney General has been in protracted litigation with crypto exchange Bitfinex and affiliated stablecoin-issuer Tether. On February 23, 2021, the Attorney General announced a definitive settlement of the matter. The settlement cements the New York Attorney General’s intention aggressively to police the virtual currency marketplace using the expansive anti-fraud authority granted under the Martin Act…
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