crypto-assets

SEC Chair Atkins Speaks on Spring 2025 Regulatory Agenda

By Paul S. Atkins September 5, 2025 by renholding

Today [September 4],  the Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs released the Spring 2025 Unified Agenda of Regulatory and Deregulatory Actions.

This regulatory agenda reflects that it is a new day at the Securities and Exchange Commission. The items …

SEC and CFTC Staff Issue Joint Statement on Spot Crypto Trading

By Securities and Exchange Commission September 3, 2025 by renholding

The SEC’s Division of Trading and Markets and the CFTC’s Division of Market Oversight and Division of Clearing and Risk (collectively, the “Divisions”)[1] are announcing a cross-agency initiative in furtherance of the SEC’s Project Crypto and the CFTC’s Crypto …

SEC Staff Issues Statement on Certain Liquid Staking Activities

By Securities and Exchange Commission August 6, 2025 by renholding

As part of an effort to provide greater clarity on the application of the federal securities laws to crypto assets,[1] the Division of Corporation Finance is providing its views[2] on a specific type of Protocol Staking. The Division …

Morrison & Foerster Discusses SEC Guidance on Disclosure for Crypto Asset Exchange-Traded Products

By Val Dahiya, Kelley A. Howes and Sydney E. Stancik August 5, 2025 by renholding

On July 1, 2025, the Staff of the Division of Corporation Finance (the “Staff”) of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) released new guidance[1] on disclosure requirements for offerings and registrations of securities by crypto asset exchange-traded product …

Wachtell Lipton Discusses Cryptoasset Developments: Continued Progress Toward U.S. Regulatory Clarity

By Kevin S. Schwartz and David M. Adlerstein June 9, 2025 by renholding

As regulators and policymakers across the federal government press forward with creating long-sought rules of the road for the cryptoasset industry, several recent developments bear particular significance for the promise of the decentralized internet, or Web3. Among these is the …

The GENIUS Act Needs a Rule on Extraterritoriality

By Benedikt Bartylla April 29, 2025 by renholding

Congress seems on its way to passing the first piece of federal crypto-regulation, the Guiding and Establishing National Innovation for U.S. Stablecoins – or GENIUS – Act. The law would create a comprehensive regulatory framework for payment stablecoins, which are …

Sullivan & Cromwell Discusses DOJ Limits on Crypto Prosecutions

By Andrew J. DeFilippis, Sharon Cohen Levin, James M. McDonald, Olivia G. Chalos and Berke B. Gursoy April 17, 2025 by renholding

On April 7, 2025, Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche issued a memorandum to all Department of Justice employees (the “Memorandum”) announcing an overhaul of previous enforcement directives relating to digital assets. The Deputy Attorney General issued the Memorandum consistent with …

SEC Offers Views on Stablecoins

By Securities and Exchange Commission April 7, 2025 by renholding

As part of an effort to provide greater clarity on the application of the federal securities laws to crypto assets,[1] the Division of Corporation Finance is providing its views[2] on certain types of crypto assets commonly referred to …

SEC Commissioner Speaks on Finding Balance at the SEC

By Caroline A. Crenshaw March 26, 2025 by renholding

[1] Good morning and thank you for having me. Before I begin, I would like to thank ICI for the invitation to speak here today.[2] I am coming to speak before you during a time of change, both at …

SEC Confirms Bitcoin and Proof-of-Work Mining Not Considered Securities

By Securities and Exchange Commission March 21, 2025 by renholding

As part of an effort to provide greater clarity on the application of the federal securities laws to crypto assets,[1] the Division of Corporation Finance is providing its views[2] on certain activities on proof-of-work networks known as “mining.”

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Wilson Sonsini Discusses the New SEC Crypto Task Force

By Amy Caiazza and Alice Cao March 12, 2025 by eorozco

The lead of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission’s (SEC’s) new Crypto Task Force (Task Force), Commissioner Hester Peirce, recently laid out principles for how the Task Force will approach regulation and provided a roadmap for specific issues the Task …

The SEC Can Learn a Thing or Two from Europe About Regulating Digital Assets    

By Alexandros Kazimirov August 23, 2024 by renholding

In its approach to digital assets, the Securities and Exchange Commission has been criticized for regulating by enforcement. In reality, the SEC has taken a twofold approach. In addition to bringing lawsuits against crypto exchanges, the commission has proposed amending …

How to Regulate FinTech, Crypto Assets, DeFi, and Other Financial Innovations

By Steven L. Schwarcz April 10, 2024 by renholding

In a new article, I attempt to build a systematic framework for regulating FinTech-driven innovations. In doing so, I clarify and simplify the confusing terminology that makes FinTech appear more complicated than it is.

“FinTech” refers to the use of …

Are Securities Class Actions Appropriate to Address Secondary-Trading Crypto Fraud?

By Menesh S. Patel April 2, 2024 by renholding

Traders in the United States now routinely trade hundreds of crypto assets in secondary crypto markets, and the pool of tradable assets is growing. Through these transactions, traders have seen financial gains and losses, which at times have been substantial. …

The Current Securities Landscape of Cryptocurrencies and NFTs

By Christa J. Laser December 1, 2023 by renholding

The value of assets on the blockchain has soared to billions of dollars, stored everywhere from Bitcoin to Bored Ape Yacht Club NFTs to play-to-earn gaming. Some of those assets, though, have crashed and burned in the wake of market …

Columbia Law School to Hold 2023 Conference on M&A and Corporate Governance

By Reynolds Holding November 27, 2023 by renholding

On December 8, 2023, Columbia Law School will hold its 2023 Conference on Mergers & Acquisitions and Corporate Governance. The event is co-sponsored by the school’s Ira M. Millstein Center for Global Markets and Corporate Ownership, the Columbia Law School …

Skadden Discusses New EU and UK Regimes for Regulating Cryptoassets

By Simon Toms, Azad Ali, Eve-Christie Vermynck and David Y. Wang June 30, 2023 by renholding

The European Union and U.K. are establishing comprehensive regimes for the regulation of cryptoassets. The Markets in Crypto-Assets Regulation (MiCA) was published in the Official Journal of the European Union on June 9, 2023, and will come into force on …

Davis Polk Discusses SEC’s Proposed Safeguarding Rule for Registered Advisers

By Gregory S. Rowland, Leor Landa, Michael S. Hong, Zachary J. Zweihorn and Sarah E. Kim April 20, 2023 by renholding

On February 15, 2023, the SEC proposed a sweeping new rule (Proposed Rule) which would replace current Rule 206(4)-2 (Custody Rule) under the Investment Advisers Act of 1940 (Advisers Act or Act). The Custody Rule was originally adopted in 1962 …

SEC Chair Gensler Speaks Before the Investor Advisory Committee

By Gary Gensler March 3, 2023 by renholding

Good morning. I am pleased to join the Investor Advisory Committee. As is customary, I’d like to note that my views are my own and I am not speaking on behalf of the Commission or SEC staff.

I want to

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SEC Chair Gensler on Proposed Rules About Investment Adviser Custody

By Gary Gensler February 17, 2023 by renholding

Today [February 15], the Commission is considering a proposal to expand and enhance the role of qualified custodians when registered investment advisers custody assets on behalf of their investors. I support this proposal because, in using important authorities Congress granted …