Digital currency is an exciting, dynamic and growing technology changing the financial and legal landscapes. To keep pace, corporate counsel must stay abreast of new rules, new regulations, and new applications of blockchain technology. Recognizing this need, Digital Currency + Blockchain Perspectives chronicles industry news, including regulatory developments and other issues affecting our clients and the digital currency industry.

CFTC Reaffirms Stance on Digital Currencies; Expresses View on DLT and ICOs

Pursuant to its LabCFTC initiative, the regulator issued a FinTech Primer on virtual currencies, including addressing the jurisdictional reach of the CFTC and the SEC (and potential overlap). Several questions remain regarding the already uncertain status of ICOs under the federal securities and commodities laws and regulations. WHAT HAPPENED? On…

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SEC Announces Cyber Enforcement Initiative: Distributed Ledger Technology, Initial Coin Offerings Under the Microscope

On September 25, 2017, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) announced the launch of its new Cyber Unit. Drawing on the existing cyber experience of the SEC’s Enforcement Division, and including personnel from around the country, the Cyber Unit will target cyber-related misconduct in the following areas identified by the…

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Vote for us for Best Legal Blog

Digital Currency + Blockchain Perspectives has been selected to compete in The Expert Institute’s Best Legal Blog Competition. From a field of hundreds of potential nominees, Digital Currency + Blockchain Perspectives has received enough nominations to join the one of the largest competitions for legal blog writing online today. Now…

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See you at BlockCon!

Goodwin is a proud sponsor of BlockCon 2017, taking place October 10-11, 2017 in Santa Monica, CA. Grant Fondo, Chair of Goodwin’s Digital Currency + Blockchain Technology practice, will moderate a panel on Wednesday, October 11th that includes 2 of the firm’s ICO clients, Scott Morgan of Nanome/Matryx and George…

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CFTC and the Bitcoin Give and Take

Recently, the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission (“CFTC”) granted LedgerX, LLC, registration as a derivatives clearing organization (“DCO”) under the Commodity Exchange Act, and with it, the right to clear fully collateralized digital currency swaps, subject to applicable law.  It became the “first federally regulated Bitcoin options exchange and clearinghouse to list…

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SEC's Phone Call to Protostarr Shuts Down its ICO

Protostarr, a block-chain based startup, has shut down its decentralized application and refunded its initial coin offering (ICO) participants following a request for information from the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). According to the company, on August 24, the SEC contacted Protostarr and asked the company to “volunteer a…

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China bans and deems illegal the practice of raising funds through launches of token-based digital currencies

Various news sources, including Reuters, are reporting that the People’s Bank of China has issued a joint statement with other Chinese regulators proclaiming that ICOs in China are illegal.  See the Reuters article here: China hits booming cryptocurrency market with coin fundraising ban.  The statement further directs Individuals and organizations…

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