Politics, Legal & Regulation

Policy and regulations impacting innovations in Finance.

SEC Hits Blockchain Company Longfin with Additional Fraud Charges Related to Reg A+ Offering, Longfin CEO Hit with Criminal Charges

The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has added new fraud charges against Longfin Corp. and its CEO for falsifying the company’s revenue. Longfin’s former consultant Andy Altahawi was also included in the action for “fraudulently securing the company’s listing on Nasdaq.” In April of 2018,… Read More

Coinbase, Circle Disappear from DefendCrypto List of Supporters

In the wake of the Security and Exchange Commission’s (SEC) enforcement action against Kik and the Kin initial coin offering (ICO), it appears that Coinbase’s name, as well as Circle’s, has been scrubbed from the list of supporters on the DefendCrypto website. DefendCrypto was concocted… Read More

Alternative & Direct Investment Securities Association Applauds Regulation Best Interest

Alternative & Direct Investment Securities Association (ADISA), a trade association for the retail alternative investment space, has commented on the Securities & Exchange Commission’s (SEC) vote to approve the final version of Regulation Best Interest. Under Regulation Best Interest, broker-dealers will be required to act… Read More

Brexit Hedge: FCA Solidifies Relationship with Dutch AFM as Financial Firms Look for EU Bridge

The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) and the Dutch Authority for the Financial Markets (AFM) have signed a formal agreement to work more closely together as financial services firms look to maintain a foothold in continental Europe. The FCA states that since the UK announced its… Read More

Kik is the First Major ICO SEC Enforcement Action: “The First Shoe Has Finally Dropped.”

Kik’s Hail Mary Pass. As Crowdfund Insider reported earlier today, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has publicly revealed the allegations against Kik and the issuance of the Kin tokens. In 2017, Kik completed an initial coin offering (ICO) that raised a whopping $100 million… Read More

How Do You Account for That? The IFRS to Address Accounting for Cryptocurrency in Meeting Next Week

The IFRS (International Financial Reporting Standards Foundation) has been ruminating on the challenges of accounting for cryptocurrency for some time now. Next week (June 11-12), the IFRS Interpretations Committee will be holding a meeting in London with crypto on the agenda listed as one of… Read More

FBI Seeking Information from Investors Harmed in Collapse of QuadrigaCX

The US Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) is seeking information from investors who lost money when the Canadian cryptocurrency trading platform QuadrigaCX fell apart late last year. Individuals with questions or concerns about the failed exchange or who believe they were a victim in the… Read More

SEC Goes Public with Kik – Kin ICO Lawsuit Alleging Sale of Unregistered Securities

The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has publicly announced its lawsuit against Kik Interactive for conducting an illegal $100 million securities offering of “Kin” digital tokens in an initial coin offering (ICO). The legal action should come as no surprise to industry followers as Kik… Read More

Julia Groves: Pleased with the FCA’s Updated Rules for Loans and Investment-based Crowdfunding

Julia Groves, Partner and Head of Digital at investment platform, Downing LLP and long-time UK Crowdfunding Association Director, issued a statement on updated rules for loan and investment-based crowdfunding revealed by the UK Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) today. Groves was complimentary of the new rules… Read More

The Financial Conduct Authority Updates Rules for Peer to Peer Lending, Boosts Investor Protection Including Cap on Retail Investors

The UK Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) has published a long-anticipated update to crowdfunding rules. More specifically, the FCA has “enhanced” aspects of investor protection for investors participating in peer to peer lending (P2P). Rules for investment crowdfunding, on the other hand, came out largely unchanged…. Read More

Heard on F Street: SEC Fintech Forum Engages with Crypto Industry to Discuss Digital Asset Regulation

Last Friday, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) held its first Fintech Forum in years. The topic of discussion was the regulation of digital assets and distributed ledger technology (DLT). The interaction between presenters and SEC staff provided a glimpse into the progress and struggle… Read More

Outgoing CFTC Chairman Giancarlo: Regulation of Futures and Blockchain Should Be Largely Led by Markets

In a speech delivered to delegates of the Commissione Nazionale per le Societa e la Borsa (CONSOB- Italy’s securities regulator), CFTC Chairman J. Christopher Giancarlo highlighted his organization’s commitment to regulating commodities markets, including the cryptocurrency sector, in a manner that gives room for innovation. He… Read More

P2P Lender Lendy Goes Bust

Peer to peer lender Lendy is no more. On May 24, the online lender went into administration. According to the Lendy website: The administrators are working closely with the FCA who consented to their appointment over the Companies. This website will be used to provide… Read More

Boston Security Token Exchange: tZero Partner BOX Exchange Files Proposed Rule Change as it Pushes to Trade Digital Assets

Last week, the BOX Exchange filed a proposed rule change with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). BOX has partnered with tZero to trade digital assets, or security tokens, in a new entity called the Boston Security Token Exchange (BSTX). The filing is over 400… Read More

A Problem with Crypto-Assets that are Securities: They Can be Plastic in Nature

Last week, Crowdfund Insider reported on the International Organization of Securities Commissions (IOSCO) consultation pertaining to “crypto asset trading platforms” or “CTPs.” As part of the consultation, IOSCO presented a series of issues and risks affiliated with digital assets and the trading of these assets… Read More

Ministers at Forthcoming G20 Summit in Japan to May Create Global Cryptocurrency Exchange Registry

Finance Ministers and Central Bank Governors from the globe’s twenty most powerful economies are “expected” to collaborate on creating a global registry of cryptocurrency exchanges when they meet at the G20 Conference in Fukuoka, Japan, in June, Nikkei Asian Review (NAR) reports. G20 government personnel meeting… Read More

Head of German Bundesbank Advises Against Creation of Central Bank Digital Currencies

The President of Germany’s central bank, Jens Weidmann, has warned that implementing central bank digital currencies (CBDCs) could lead to the destabilization of global financial systems, especially during times of fiscal crisis. The warning came during a speech delivered at the opening of the Bundesbank… Read More

Fintech Forum: SEC Director of Corporate Finance Says it is Possible for a Token to Trade and NOT be a Security

“We have a crypto family at the SEC.” Yesterday, the Security and Exchange Commission (SEC) held its first Fintech Forum in quite some time with the event focusing specifically on distributed ledger technology (DLT or blockchain) and digital assets. The new tech has challenged the… Read More

Russian Central Bank Wary of Cryptocurrencies; Sberbank Suspends Crypto Desk Plans

Bank of Russia head Elvira Nabiullina has told deputies of the State Duma (parliament) in Russia that her organization is wary of cryptocurrencies, Pravo reports: “We are against the legalization of cryptocurrency as a means of payment. We believe that there are big risks for… Read More

Korean Government Convenes Emergency Meeting to Address Stirring Crypto Markets

Stating that they plan to “closely monitor market condition(s)… (and) strictly control…illegal acts such as fraud and (multilevel marketing),” officials from the Korean Department of Justice and the Financial Supervisory Commission held an emergency meeting May 28th to “examine…virtual currency market trend(s)” in the wake of price… Read More

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