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On February 29, the state of Montana, supported by seven other states, filed an amicus brief arguing that the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) lacks authority to regulate crypto assets. The attorneys general (AG) submitted the brief in response to the SEC’s enforcement action alleging violations of the Exchange Act against Payward, a secondary market crypto platform. The AGs argue that the SEC’s position, with respect to regulating the crypto market, may potentially preempt consumer protection and other state laws, thus disrupting the traditional division of powers between the states and the federal government.

On October 16, the Securities and Exchange Commission’s Division of Examinations (the Division) released its 2024 Examination Priorities report. The report highlights that future examinations will focus on “risk areas impacting various market participants,” emphasizing risks posed by products and services: (1) related to cryptocurrency; and (2) that leverage emerging technology. In addition, the report indicates that examinations will focus on market participants’ compliance with Anti-Money Laundering (AML) laws.

On June 6, Alabama, California, Illinois, Kentucky, Maryland, New Jersey, South Carolina, Vermont, Washington, and Wisconsin each filed enforcement actions against leading cryptocurrency exchange Coinbase and its parent, alleging that Coinbase’s staking rewards program constituted unregistered securities sales in violation their states’ securities laws. These actions followed an investigation by a multistate task force with assistance from the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) protects investors and maintains a fair, orderly, and efficient marketplace. While the SEC has historically focused its enforcement efforts on public companies, recent announcements from Acting Chief Accountant Paul Munter suggest the SEC is taking a closer look at other actors who play a role in fair and efficient…

On June 22, the Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs (OIRA) released the Spring 2022 Unified Agenda of Regulatory and Deregulatory Actions. OIRA is the government’s central authority to review executive branch regulations. The report, which includes both short- and long-term regulatory actions that administrative agencies plan to take, notably included several contributions from the…

On April 28, bipartisan lawmakers in the U.S. House of Representatives introduced legislation, allowing the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) to oversee cryptocurrency spot markets. The legislation intends to create a framework to fill the regulatory gaps between the CFTC and Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) digital asset marketplace and related regimes.

According to bill…

On April 6, Senator Pat Toomey (R-PA) released a draft of his proposed stablecoin legislation titled, Stablecoin Transparency of Reserves and Uniform Safe Transactions Act, or the Stablecoin TRUST Act. Toomey, the ranking member of the Senate Banking Committee, has been a vocal proponent of blockchain innovation, and his recent bill calls for a deft…

On March 31, a New York federal court dismissed a proposed securities class-action lawsuit filed against Binance, the world’s largest cryptocurrency exchange. The lawsuit, one of a host of similar actions brought against cryptocurrency exchanges in 2020, was filed by token buyers who purchased cryptocurrency on Binance’s platform.

The plaintiffs asserted that Binance had violated…

On January 28, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC or Commission) issued a press release, announcing the settlement of various fraud charges against a private technology company in light of their “significant remedial efforts” made during the course of an internal investigation into alleged misconduct by the firm’s former CEO. A demonstration of regulatory pragmatism…

On October 6, Deputy Attorney General Lisa O. Monaco announced the creation of a National Cryptocurrency Enforcement Team (NCET) to handle criminal misuses of cryptocurrency. According to the press release, NCET will focus specifically on crimes committed in virtual currency exchanges, mixing and tumbling services, and money launderers. The team’s additional duties will include…