Many of the world’s leading financial services providers have started developing their own blockchains, either to facilitate the potential for creating their own cryptocurrency, to add an additional layer of security to encrypted transactions in fiat currency, or to provide their customers services more cost-effectively than ever before. Companies that…
A new report published by the European Parliament’s Committee on Economic and Monetary Affairs calls for the establishment of a task force, with its own budget and dedicated staff, that would study digital currencies and provide policy advice to the European Union and member-states. The report also provides for more…
On Thursday, Sept. 17, 2015, the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) issued an Order against San Francisco-based Coinflip and its chief executive officer, Francisco Riordan, to resolve allegations that Coinflip conducted activity related to commodity options transactions without complying with the Commodity Exchange Act (CEA) and CFTC Regulations. Specifically, the CFTC…
This week Cubits.gr and BTCGreece began a partnership aimed at providing a solution to Greek capital controls. Part of that solution entails supporting voucher payments backed by bitcoin and installing one thousand Bitcoin ATMs throughout the country. Cubits, a UK Registered company founded in 2014, is a Bitcoin platform where…
It may not be at the forefront of your digital currency interests, but cryptocurrencies have unique characteristics that require careful consideration for estate planning. If you have bitcoin, for example, but your beneficiaries do not know about it when you die, they likely never will. Bitcoin transactions are anonymous. And…
In this era of regulatory uncertainty, it is worth considering how privacy laws may affect digital currency businesses. Privacy law consists of a web of federal and state law – this first installment in a two-part series will discuss major threads in that web, the Privacy and Safeguards Rules of…
It’s official. New York published the final BitLicense in its state register, which launched a 45-day period for businesses to submit a completed application for a License to Engage in Virtual Currency Business Activity. As the August 8th deadline approaches, employees might find themselves scratching their heads at how to…
Several states are in various stages of implementing regulations related to digital currency. Below is a short summary of the actions currently underway. California As discussed in a previous post, in February 2015 a California Assembly member introduced a bill (AB 1326) proposing a licensing framework for digital currencies in…
On June 12, global insurance giant Lloyd’s of London released a report titled Bitcoin: Risk Factors for Insurance. Lloyd’s knows a thing or two about risk—it has been underwriting for more than 300 years and has insured everything from the Titanic to Keith Richards’ hands—so what does Lloyd’s think about…
In January 2014, Overstock.com became the first major online retailer to accept payment in bitcoin. Less than eighteen months later, Overstock is now the first company to offer qualified buyers the option of purchasing private cryptosecurities, in the form of bonds. The corporate bonds will trade using Bitcoin’s blockchain protocol….