Recent events, namely the infrastructure bill saga and many thoughtful conversations that have followed, have me rethinking my stance on definitional issues that have existed in crypto from inception. A couple of years ago, I used to think that crypto had a definitions problem due to a lack of precision…

Though seemingly coming from nowhere for many, the themes behind the Reddit-fueled r/wallstreetbets pump of GameStop feel familiar. Watching it unfold, I tried to figure out just why it had captured my interest to such a degree — and, to me it was a spillover into the traditional markets of…

After what was, frankly, a painfully long period of silence, the SEC issued crypto guidance in the form of a no action letter and non-binding guidance through a digital asset framework on April 3, 2019. Taking the no-action letter first, the SEC is responding to a request from TurnKey Jet…

The Regulatory Dark Ages of Crypto I got through the July 16, 2018 hearings in the House. I intended to listen in the night of the hearings but had a head’s up that they would be dramatically disappointing so I took some time to gather myself before slogging through them. …

Sarah H. Brennan, a corporate and securities attorney, leads the blockchain technology, cryptocurrency and digital assets practice team at Lippes Mathias Wexler Friedman LLP. In June 2015, in a race to be a first mover in the space, the New York Department of Financial Services (DFS) enacted the BitLicense regulatory…

By Sarah H. Brennan and Sean P. Balkin On December 21, 2017, well in advance of the anticipated January 11th, 2018 court date, the New York Supreme Court handed down a ruling in Chino v New York Dept. of Fin. Servs., dismissing the Theo Chino’s lawsuit against the New York…

On June 3, 2014, the Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC”) announced that it had settled with Erik T. Voorhees, a well-known founder of Bitcoin start-up companies, in connection with allegations that Voorhees conducted unregistered Bitcoin-denominated offerings over the internet in 2012 and 2013. The SEC alleges that Voorhees distributed…

In our Expert Takes, opinion leaders from inside and outside the crypto industry express their views, share their experience and give professional advice. Expert Takes cover everything from Blockchain technology and ICO funding to taxation, regulation, and cryptocurrency adoption by different sectors of the economy. If you would like to…

For a regulatory framework to be effective, it needs to be tailored with precision to serve the dual goals of (x) mitigating risk and tamping down acts of fraud and malfeasance while (y) still enabling innovation and growth. Especially in the context of an infant industry, it is incumbent upon…