In response to market participants’ request for guidance on how the customer protection provisions of the Commodity Exchange Act (“Act”) and the Regulations (“Regulations”) of the Commodity Futures Trading Commission  (“CFTC”) apply to virtual currencies deposited by futures customers or cleared swaps customers with futures commission merchants (“FCMs”), the CFTC’s Division of Swap Dealer and Intermediary Oversight (“DSIO”) issued an advisory on October 21, 2020 (“Advisory”) regarding the holding of virtual currency in segregated accounts.  The Advisory provides FCMs with its views on accepting and holding customer virtual currency assets.  The Advisory also sets forth guidance on practices to consider in developing and maintaining risk management programs in accordance with Regulation 1.11 when holding virtual currency as customer funds.  With the issuance of this Advisory, FCMs holding virtual currencies as customer funds should consider themselves on notice of these requirements and should immediately incorporate these requirements into their risk management programs.    

Produced by the Attorney General’s Cyber-Digital Task Force, the Framework is divided into three parts with a conclusion. It provides an overview of threats and enforcement challenges associated with the increasing use of cryptocurrency; enumerates the criminal and civil statutes and regulatory framework used to investigate and regulate illegal crypto-related activities; and outlines ongoing challenges for businesses involved with cryptocurrency, and future strategies for investigating and prosecuting crypto involved crimes.

On September 30, 2020, a New York federal judge agreed with the SEC that Kik Interactive Inc.'s sale of its cryptocurrency, Kin, violated securities laws.  The case had been one of the most hotly contested concerning the application of securities laws to the sale of cryptocurrency.

Join the Global Blockchain Business Council (GBBC) and Global Digital Finance (GDF) on Tuesday, July 21 for a webinar discussing the Regulation of Blockchain in the EU. Hear from two prominent leaders in blockchain regulation discus blockchain innovations and regulations in the European Union (EU). Learn about the impact of coronavirus on the blockchain community in the European Union, and the EU’s latest innovations and contributions in the Blockchain world.

The fifth entry in a series of blog posts focused on trends and analytics derived from Murphy & McGonigle's Blockchain Litigation Database.

The fourth entry in a series of blog posts focused on trends and analytics derived from Murphy & McGonigle's Blockchain Litigation Database.