On Monday, August 6, 2018 Goodwin will host an hour-long webinar on crypto considerations for regulated entities in Vermont. Michael Pieciak, Commissioner of the Vermont Department of Financial Regulation, will join Goodwin Partner Bill Stern and Counsel David Solander for a discussion of relevant topics for investment advisers, broker-dealers and banking institutions….
This past week was a busy one for state securities regulators, the CFTC and the SEC as they continue their focus on rooting out fraud from the digital currency space and crypto- and blockchain-based ventures. Noteworthy developments included (1) the North American Securities Administrators Association (NASAA) announcing a “cryptosweep” –…
Goodwin is a proud sponsor of Consensus 2018, taking place May 14-16, 2018 at the Hilton Midtown in New York. For more information on the conference, visit CoinDesk’s show website. We will have a booth setup in the exhibit hall for the duration of the conference and members from our team will…
On Wednesday, March 28th, a group from Goodwin’s Digital Currency + Blockchain Technology practice participated in the Boston Bar Association’s Forum on Blockchain & Cryptocurrency. The forum brought together attorneys and industry professionals for panel discussions on securities offerings and capital raising, financial services regulation, intellectual property, and securities law…
While the rise of cryptocurrencies has highlighted the usefulness of blockchain technology, involving the creation of decentralized, electronic ledgers to track transactions, this technology is applicable to other fields, including financial services and pharmaceuticals. Contemporaneously, the number of pending US patent applications that incorporate blockchain technology has increased dramatically. But…
On February 7, 2018, the New York State Department of Financial Services (NY DFS) issued guidance to all virtual currency businesses that maintain a “BitLicense” or that are chartered as a limited purpose trust company under New York Banking Law (collectively, VC Entities), including those that maintain a money transmitter…
On February 7, 2018, the SEC’s Office of Compliance Inspections and Examinations (OCIE) announced its 2018 Examination Priorities. In what comes as no surprise, the exam priorities include initial coin offerings (ICOs) and cryptocurrency, stating the following: “The cryptocurrency and ICO markets have grown rapidly and present a number of…
The 2018 iteration of Yahoo! Finance’s All Markets Summit, taking place on Tuesday, February 7, 2018, will focus solely on cryptocurrency. From Bitcoin and blockchain to ICOs, in conjunction with CoinDesk, Yahoo! Finance will lead a series of conversations with CEOs, engineers, policy makers and legal experts on the growing…
On January 19, 2018, SEC Co-Enforcement Directors Stephanie Avakian and Steven Peikin and CFTC Enforcement Director James McDonald issued the following joint statement regarding virtual currency enforcement actions: “When market participants engage in fraud under the guise of offering digital instruments – whether characterized as virtual currencies, coins, tokens, or…
On January 8, 2018, the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) released its 2018 Annual Regulatory and Examination Priorities Letter (Exam Priorities Letter) for its broker-dealer members. In the Exam Priorities Letter, FINRA addresses initial coin offerings (ICOs) and digital currencies, stating the following: “FINRA will closely monitor developments in this…