The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) has conditionally approved a national bank charter for Anchorage Digital Bank NA.

The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission recently issued guidance that permits broker-dealers to custody customers' digital asset securities.  A broker-dealer engaging in this activity is considered to be a "special purpose broker-dealer" and must refrain from activities in "traditional" securities.  

On December 17, 2020, the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) released a Digital Assets Primer to provide updated information to the public about emerging concepts in digital assets.

Murphy & McGonigle’s annual blockchain conference, CryptoLex, returns in virtual format to provide an early perspective on the upcoming year for cryptocurrency and blockchain. CryptoLex ’21 will take place on Tues., Jan. 12 (1:00 pm – 3:30 pm EST) and will include speakers from cryptocurrency companies, exchanges, legal and financial services.

As market momentum for bitcoin and blockchain continues to rise, CryptoLex will provide an in-depth look at the latest regulatory developments, litigation trends, and financial services adoption in the growing sector.

This is the fourth edition of CryptoLex, which was first conducted in 2018. The proprietary blockchain conference of Murphy & McGonigle, CryptoLex is conducted by Murphy & McGonigle’s FinTech & Blockchain Practice. To RSVP for CryptoLex, please contact Sarita Lavehim at Slavehim@mmlawus.com.

To view videos of the CryptoLex panels, please… 

Panel #1 https://view.knowledgevision.com/presentation/2b011f73a9e64b00a7be0f87f1c57428
Panel #2 https://view.knowledgevision.com/presentation/bf1bc69f2d7d4608bb9056effa61b48a
Panel #3 https://view.knowledgevision.com/presentation/c9eab587db6e4e0a89bfc011df842a85

For the Conference schedule and featured speakers for CryptoLex ’21, please click on this link. 

On December 18, the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) released a proposed rule for virtual currency transactions involving unhosted wallets.

The SEC announced on December 3^rd that its Strategic Hub for Innovation and Financial Technology, FinHub, will become a stand-alone office. 

The Financial Crimes Enforcement Network and the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve are soliciting comments on a joint notice of proposed rulemaking which proposes to amend the Bank Secrecy Act to affirmatively apply Recordkeeping Rule and Travel Rule regulations to Convertible Virtual Currencies, and also proposes to reduce the monetary threshold for reporting and recordkeeping requirements.