On January 10, 2024, the Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC” or the “Commission”) approved the listing and trading of eleven spot bitcoin exchange traded products (“ETPs”). [1] The Commission declared effective the registration statements for ten of the ETPs on the same date. This long-awaited approval stands in contrast to the SEC’s sixteen prior denials
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The UK’s Regulatory Roadmap for Stablecoins: A Closer Look
On October 30, 2023, HM Treasury released a policy update announcing its intention to bring forward secondary legislation to introduce regulatory measures for specific cryptoassets known as stablecoins by early 2024. The policy update outlines the proposed framework for regulating the issuance, custody, and utilization of fiat-backed stablecoins by amending existing financial services legislation. In…
In Unprecedented Action FinCEN Identifies Virtual Currency Exchange as Primary Money Laundering Concern
On January 18, 2023, the US Department of the Treasury’s Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) issued an order identifying the virtual currency exchange Bitzlato Limited (Bitzlato) as a “primary money laundering concern” in connection with Russian illicit finance. The order, which is the first of its kind, was issued pursuant to Section 9714(a) of the…
Proposed Rule Lays Out Who Will Have Access to New Corporate Beneficial Ownership Information
On December 16, FinCEN issued a notice of proposed rulemaking (NPRM) entitled “Beneficial Ownership Information Access and Safeguards, and Use of FinCEN Identifiers for Entities.” The NPRM is intended to implement the Corporate Transparency Act (CTA) and, in particular, to govern which entities may access corporate beneficial ownership information (BOI) that certain entities will soon…
Alan Cohn on Blockchain in 2017
CoinDesk quoted Alan Cohn in a December 30 article titled “A Slow Awakening: 2016 in US Blockchain Policy.” In the article, which discusses blockchain regulatory developments of the past year and what may lie ahead in 2017, Alan Cohn says: “If 2016 was the year that the blockchain burst into public view, 2017…
Bitcoin Is No Longer All Greek to the Greeks
In prior posts we’ve observed that the technology underlying Bitcoin – the “blockchain” – presents a world of possible applications unrelated to the use of Bitcoin as a currency. From securities settlement to remittances to asset transfer to the Internet of Things, the possibilities are endless, and some of the best and brightest minds in the world are investing their time, energy, and money to unlock the blockchain’s potential.
But the crisis in Greece is shining a brighter light on Bitcoin as a currency. With capital controls, restrictions on withdrawals, and widespread fears of a banking collapse, there has reportedly been a significant increase in the acquisition of bitcoins by users in Greece. With Greeks reportedly resorting to IOUs to obtain needed goods because of a lack of access to their money, the crisis underscores the advantages of Bitcoin as a way of paying for goods and services and transferring money across town or around the world without having to depend on traditional financial institutions.Continue Reading Bitcoin Is No Longer All Greek to the Greeks