Columbia Law School
Sky Blog
Thank you. It’s great to be with you all at this event, particularly as the University of Pennsylvania is my alma mater. I was over at Wharton, and what I knew of the law school is that the library stacks
tokens
How the Automated Restructuring of Tokenized Securities Can Lower the Cost of Capital
In a recent paper, we make the case for a smart contract-based automated restructuring framework that can be used by any firm that issues equity and debt securities in tokenized form. The paper is the basis for an actual smart-contract …
How Crypto Fraud Affects Investor Behavior
In the world of financial markets, fraud poses a significant threat, undermining investor trust and leading to misallocation of resources. Cryptocurrency markets present heightened risks of fraud, which draws the attention of regulators, legal experts, and investors. The Securities and …
Ripping the Ripple Opinion
Last Thursday’s split summary-judgment decision in the case that the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) brought against Ripple Labs, Inc. (Ripple) and certain of its senior leaders is bonkers. In partly holding for the defendants, the opinion ignores well established …
SEC v. Ripple: Everyone Loses
On July 13, Judge Analisa Torres handed down a long-awaited decision in SEC v. Ripple. Crypto enthusiasts immediately began celebrating the opinion as holding that XRP, the Ripple token, was not a security. Others welcomed the finding that certain …
Stocks, Memes, or Miles? A New Crypto Taxonomy and Regulatory Paradigm
Crypto is at a crossroads. After a cascade of bankruptcies – including FTX’s implosion – millions of defrauded customers, and trillions of dollars in value destruction, many are wondering whether the sector has a future. Amidst the wreckage, after years …
Wachtell Lipton Discusses Emerging Issues in Decentralized Governance and the Lessons of Corporate Governance
While recent gyrations in cryptoasset markets have focused attention on the future contours of stablecoins, market-making, and impending regulation, another feature of the blockchain landscape is also confronting noteworthy challenges. Specifically, a new breed of business organization has emerged …
How Disclosure and Information Intermediaries Strengthen the Credibility of Initial Coin Offerings
The crypto-tokens market has recently emerged as an alternative source of financing for entrepreneurial ventures, with approximately $27 billion raised globally through March 2022.[1] These ventures issue blockchain-based digital “crypto-tokens” to raise external capital through an initial coin offering …
A Tokenized Future: Regulatory Lessons from Crowdfunding and Standard Form Contracts
Cryptocurrencies and other digital assets (“crypto”) are surging in popularity. If cryptos are securities (“investment contracts” under the Howey test), they must be sold in accordance with the federal securities laws. This likely requires registration with the Securities and Exchange …
SEC Chair Gensler Speaks on Crypto Markets
The Economics of Crypto Funds
Crypto funds are a new financial intermediary that trade in cryptographically protected digital assets, known as coins or tokens. Both the number of crypto funds and investments in crypto funds are soaring. As of the second quarter of 2021, more …
SEC Chair Gensler Discusses Crypto Regulation
Some might wonder: What does the SEC have to do with crypto?
Further, why did an organization like the Aspen Security Forum ask me to speak about crypto’s intersection with national security?
As is customary, I’d like to note that …
Why We Need to Verify and Unmask the Identity of Cryptocurrency Users
Cryptocurrencies are by now widely known as electronically generated and stored currencies that enable users to trade tokens. The tokens are exchanged anonymously through a decentralized payment system: the blockchain. To further anonymity, the parties to cryptocurrency transactions are identified …
Latham & Watkins Looks Back at Digital Asset Regulation in 2020
Last year, Latham & Watkins sounded a hopeful note that 2020 would provide a clearer vision than 2019 for the regulation of digital assets in the US. In the wake of the emergence of COVID-19, priorities changed, along with forecasts …
Why the Proposed Blockchain Token Safe Harbor Makes Sense
The application of the U.S. securities laws to blockchain tokens has been a controversial subject, with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) taking an aggressive posture. On February 6, 2020, SEC Commissioner Hester Peirce proposed a non-exclusive safe harbor from …
What Law and Economics Has to Say About Property Rights in Cryptocurrencies
Technological advancements of recent years have given birth to a strange and interesting creature: cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin, Ether, and Facebook’s upcoming Libra. Many of the advantages offered by these tokens stem from their underlying technology – a decentralized ledger, which …
SEC Commissioner Peirce Offers Proposal to Fill Gap Between Regulation and Decentralization
I appreciate the opportunity to be with all of you today. Before beginning, I have to remind you that the views I express are my own and do not necessarily represent those of the Securities and Exchange Commission or my
Blockchain Will Not Solve the Proxy Voting Problem
The U.S. proxy voting process is widely viewed as inefficient, opaque, and frequently inaccurate. The conventional wisdom is that voting inaccuracy has arisen largely as a result of decisions made in the 1960s to transition to a system of share …
Regulatory Arbitrage, Unclear Terminologies: A Challenge to Global Cryptoasset Regulations
Few innovations in finance have emerged in recent years that are as controversial or present as many challenges to regulators and policymakers as cryptoassets. A key question for regulators and market participants is the extent to which the difference between …
How Bankruptcy Law Affects Digital Assets
In the last few years, an increasing number of digital platforms have launched initial coin offerings (ICOs). ICOs are primarily studied from the perspective of securities laws. In a new paper, however, I examine how bankruptcy law applies to entities …