On October 18, 2022, the European Commission published a report, titled Information Frictions and Public Policies: Approaching the Regulation and Supervision of Decentralized Finance (“DeFi”) (the “Report”). The Report discusses the need to adapt existing policy frameworks to account for the change brought about by DeFi to the underlying information structure upon which financial services are provided.
Continue Reading European Commission Publishes Report on Decentralized Finance

Non-fungible tokens (NFTs) are creating new economic opportunities in old, familiar spaces. To capitalize on the current popularity of NFTs, some retailers are turning to the timeless art of nostalgia: reworking old media or products into an NFT collection to advertise a brand in an online space or bring new attention (and customers) to a vintage product.
Continue Reading NFTs: For Many Retailers, the “N” Stands for Nostalgia

LCX AG, a cryptocurrency exchange based in Liechtenstein, recently lost nearly $8 million in digital assets from a cyberattack. The perpetrator’s identity was unknown. Through the public ledger, LCX found the blockchain address that received the stolen assets, and quickly filed a complaint in New York to freeze certain of those assets. Without any other way to contact the perpetrator, the court permitted LCX to serve the wallet address with an NFT containing a hyperlink to the required legal notice documents. This may be the first example of service-by-NFT.
Continue Reading You’ve Been Served… By NFT?

June 9, 2022 letter to the Directors of the US Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) and US Copyright Office, Senators Thom Tillis (R-NC) and Patrick Leahy (D-VT) requested that the agencies jointly undertake a study of intellectual property (IP) rights considerations with respect to non-fungible tokens (NFT or NFTs).
Continue Reading Senators Dive Into the World of NFTs, Asking US Patent and Copyright Offices to Consider Questions Regarding Related IP Rights

On 25 October 2021, the Dubai Financial Services Authority, the regulatory body of the Dubai International Financial Centre (DIFC), announced that it implemented a regulatory framework for investment tokens issued or traded within the DIFC, which follows from the Consultation Paper No. 138 (Regulation of Security Tokens) it issued earlier in March this year.
Continue Reading Dubai Financial Services Authority Recently Launched Its Framework for Regulating Digital Assets

As a show of continued interest in the development of cryptoasset solutions, Senator Mike Crapo (R-ID), Chairman of the Senate Committee on Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs, recently sent a letter to Acting Comptroller of the Currency Brian Brooks. Chairman Crapo’s letter requested an update on findings of the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency and information regarding next steps the OCC intends to take with respect to blockchain and distributed ledger technology.
Continue Reading Senate Banking Committee Shows Continued Interest in Cryptoassets

The World Bank Group recently published a “FinTech Note” on Smart Contract Technology and Financial Inclusion in its “Finance, Competitiveness and Innovation” series. The note explores the potential of smart contracts to spur economic development and financial inclusion around the globe.
Continue Reading The World Bank Group Weighs in on the Economic Potential of Smart Contracts