Scott H. Kimpel

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On March 24, 2020, federal Judge P. Kevin Castel issued a long-anticipated opinion in the SEC’s ongoing efforts to block Telegram’s $1.7 billion initial coin offering. Judge Castel found that Telegram’s planned distribution of Gram tokens constitutes a securities offering under federal law for which no exemption from registration is available. He therefore granted the SEC a preliminary injunction blocking Telegram from distributing its Gram tokens to investors.…
Continue Reading SEC Wins Injunction in Telegram ICO Case

At the conclusion of its February meeting in Riyadh, the Group of Twenty (G20) Finance Ministers and Central Bank Governors issued a communiqué discussing a wide range of topics, including digital assets and stablecoins. The G20 reiterated its view that technological innovations can deliver significant benefits to the financial system and the broader economy.…
Continue Reading G20 Reiterates Support for Virtual Asset “Travel Rule”

As has been widely reported, SEC Commissioner Hester Peirce (aka “Crypto Mom”) recently delivered a thoughtful speech entitled “Running on Empty: A Proposal to Fill the Gap Between Regulation and Decentralization,” including with it a model rule on digital token sales. The model rule has made waves in the crypto community because it proposes a three-year safe harbor from SEC registration while a development team builds out a functional, decentralized network.…
Continue Reading SEC Commissioner Peirce Proposes to Fill the Gap Between Regulation and Decentralization

In connection with its annual meeting in Davos, Switzerland, on January 24, 2020, the World Economic Forum announced the creation of a Global Consortium for Digital Currency Governance. The initiative is touted as the first of its kind “to bring together leading companies, financial institutions, government representatives, technical experts, academics, international organizations, NGOs and members of the Forum’s communities on a global level.” The consortium will focus its efforts on developing solutions for what it describes as a fragmented regulatory system.…
Continue Reading World Economic Forum Announces Global Consortium for Digital Currency Governance

On January 16, 2020, Reps. Suzan DelBene (D-Washington) and David Schweikert (R-Arizona) introduced H.R. 5635, the Virtual Currency Tax Fairness Act of 2020. Under current IRS guidance, taxpayers who sell virtual currency must recognize any capital gain or loss on the sale, subject to any limitations on the deductibility of capital losses. Taxpayers can also recognize gains due to fluctuations in exchange rates between virtual currencies and fiat currencies.…
Continue Reading Congress Considers Virtual Currency Tax Fairness Act