Search Results: CFTC

National Futures Association to Expand Compliance Rulebook to Address Member Activities in Spot Digital Asset Commodities

On February 28, 2023, the National Futures Association (NFA), the self-regulatory organization for U.S. derivatives market participants, submitted to the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) for approval a new Compliance Rule 2-51: Requirements for Members and Associates Engaged in Activities Involving Digital Asset Commodities. Compliance Rule 2-51 would impose compliance…

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Goodwin Shares 2022 Year in Review: Digital Currency and Blockchain Litigation and Enforcement Developments

Throughout a tumultuous 2022, the digital currency and blockchain space saw a number of significant investigation, litigation, and enforcement matters as regulators continue their laser focus on the industry. Our 2022 Year in Review, authored by members of Goodwin’s leading Digital Currency and Blockchain team, recaps the most significant litigation…

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CFTC Attempts To Extend Liability To DAO Participants

In a first of its kind enforcement action, the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (“CFTC”) is attempting to hold participating members of a decentralized autonomous organization (“DAO”) liable for alleged violations of the Commodity Exchange Act (“CEA”) and CFTC regulations. The CFTC argued (1) that the DAO is an unincorporated association;…

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U.S. Crypto Regulation: Less Conversation, More Action (International Financial Law Review)

The plethora of public statements and draft legislation published over the past few months in the US as part of the effort to define a regulatory framework for digital assets have all but failed to bring market participants the clarity they need. Just last week, the White House published a…

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U.S. Crypto Regulation and the Digital Commodities Consumer Protection Act

Goodwin partner Grant Fondo was recently interviewed on CoinDesk TV in regards to the Digital Commodities Consumer Protection Act that was introduced on Wednesday, August 3, 2022. The proposed legislation suggests that the CFTC should control crypto spot markets, specifically bitcoin and ether, which the bill classifies as commodities. To…

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BitMEX Founder’s Charges Highlight Risks for DeFi

***This article was originally published in CoinDesk and can be found here – https://www.coindesk.com/markets/2020/11/24/bitmex-founders-charges-highlight-risks-for-defi  In October, the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) and the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) filed enforcement actions against the entities and individuals that own and operate the Bitcoin Mercantile Exchange (BitMEX), a trading platform for cryptocurrency…

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Department of Justice Announces “Cryptocurrency: An Enforcement Framework"

On October 8, 2020, the Attorney General’s Cyber Digital Task Force announced the release of a publication entitled Cryptocurrency: An Enforcement Framework (the “Enforcement Framework”).  The Enforcement Framework describes the DOJ’s three areas of focus for illicit activity involving cryptocurrency:  (1) financial transactions associated with the commission of crimes; (2)…

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A Second Federal Court Decides Virtual Currencies are Commodities Subject to Federal Regulation

On September 26, 2018, a federal judge in Massachusetts agreed with the Commodity Futures Trading Commission’s (“CFTC”) view that virtual currencies are commodities under the Commodity Exchange Act (“CEA”) and subject to federal regulation.  See CFTC v. My Big Coin Pay, Inc., No. CV 18-10077-RWZ, 2018 WL 4621727 (D. Mass….

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State and Federal Regulators Coordinate Efforts to Combat Crypto Fraud

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” –…

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SEC Sues Longfin Over Trades Following Acquisition of Cryptocurrency Company

The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) last week sued Longfin Corp., a financial technology company that recently entered the cryptocurrency space, as well as Longfin’s CEO and three others affiliated with the company.  The complaint, filed in federal court in Manhattan, was unsealed on April 6, 2018, when the SEC…

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