Politics, Legal & Regulation

October 5, 2017 @ 6:16 pm By JD Alois  |  

The European Banking Authority (EBA) has a mission of working towards a single regulatory and supervisory framework for the European Union member states. The goal is to make things simpler for consumers and businesses to operate across the EU. As the digitization of banking and… Read More

October 5, 2017 @ 2:26 pm By JD Alois  |  

Acting Comptroller of the Currency, Keith Noreika, delivered a speech to midsize bank risk officers today that struck a positive note. The head of the OCC said there was much room for optimism as the regulatory pendulum has shifted away from the monolithic belief that… Read More

October 5, 2017 @ 11:39 am By Erin Hobey  |  

“There are five times fewer small scale developers today than in the last housebuilding boom and not a single one of today’s top ten housebuilders was created before 1990. There is a clear monopoly in the sector,” clarified LendInvest Co-Founder & CEO Christian Faes. “What was clear… Read More

October 4, 2017 @ 11:19 pm By JD Alois  |  

Securities and Exchange Commission Chairman Jay Clayton spent much of today visiting with the House Financial Services Committee. This was his first hearing before the Committee since he took the helm of the regulatory agency. Much of Clayton’s prepared remarks echoed his visit to the… Read More

October 4, 2017 @ 7:56 pm By JD Alois  |  

The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) is out with “Master Directions” regarding non-banking financial companies or peer to peer lenders. RBI indicated last month P2P lenders would not be considered banks. The governmental directive is officially known as the “Non-Banking Financial Company – Peer to… Read More

October 4, 2017 @ 12:40 pm By JD Alois  |  

The Chairman of the Securities and Exchange Commission, Jay Clayton, visited with the House Financial Services Committee today. In his prepared remarks and along with subsequent questioning, Clayton aptly defended the importance of capital formation and the need to have a robust Initial Public Offering… Read More

October 3, 2017 @ 7:00 pm By JD Alois  |  

The Financial Industry Regulatory Authority or FINRA is currently in the midst of a comprehensive review of its rules and practices. The internal project has been labeled FINRA 360 and is said to ensure that FINRA is operating as the most effective self-regulatory organization it can be…. Read More

October 3, 2017 @ 10:04 am By JD Alois  |  

SEC Chairman Jay Clayton is scheduled to visit with the House Financial Services Committee tomorrow (October 4) beginning at 10AM ET. Clayton already testified before the Senate Banking Committee a few days back. The hearing is entitled “Examining the SEC’s Agenda, Operations, and Budget.” The… Read More

October 2, 2017 @ 10:07 pm By Samantha Hurst  |  

Last week, Administrator Linda McMahon, head of the U.S. Small Business Administration, announced the launch of Lender Match, the SBA’s online referral tool connecting small business borrowers with participating SBA lenders.  Lender Match is an upgrade to LINC (Leveraging Information and Networks to access Capital), which was… Read More

October 2, 2017 @ 6:01 pm By JD Alois  |  

Marco Santori, Fintech Team Leader at the law firm of Cooley LLP, has published a white paper tackling the issue of “Simple Agreement for Future Tokens” or SAFTs – the widely used structure for Initial Coin Offerings (ICOs). Santori proposes a path toward a compliant framework… Read More

October 2, 2017 @ 11:45 am By JD Alois  |  

SEC Chairman Jay Clayton has provided an updated on the intrusion into EDGAR that occurred back in 2016. Additionally, the SEC Chair said the Commission would be strengthening its defenses agains future attempts to hack the SECs systems. The investigation has now determined that an… Read More

October 1, 2017 @ 1:51 pm By JD Alois  |  

Just about every week we have been hearing about regulators in one country or another curtailing Initial Coin Offerings or simply banning them outright. China, perhaps taking the most extreme action, simply banned cryptocurrency exchanges and ICOs effectively crushing the nascent market domestically. Last week… Read More

September 30, 2017 @ 8:24 am By JD Alois  |  

The Enforcement Division of the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has shut down an Initial Coin Offering (ICO) that claimed to allow investors to participate in an offer backed by diamonds and real estate. The SEC has charged REcoin Group Foundation, DRC World, Diamond Reserve Club, and Maksim… Read More

September 29, 2017 @ 1:01 pm By JD Alois  |  

Earlier this week, the Australian Securities and Investment Commission (ASIC) came out with a statement on the emerging Initial Coin Offering (ICO) market that clarified its perspective on tokenized crowdfunding offers. Australia is a country that has been very aggressive in establishing itself as a… Read More

September 29, 2017 @ 10:07 am By JD Alois  |  

InvestHK is out with a laudatory statement regarding the Hong Kong Monetary Authority’s decision to “upgrade” its FIntech Supervisory Sandbox with new features.  FinTech Sandboxes have also been announced by the Securities and Futures Commission (SFC) and the Insurance Authority. These actions mean that pretty… Read More

September 29, 2017 @ 8:47 am By JD Alois  |  

The Financial Services Agency (FSA) in Japan has put their seal of approval on eleven different cryptocurrency exchanges that facilitate the transfer and exchange of Bitcoin, Ethereum and other digital currencies. This is according to a report in Reuters highlighted the fact that Japan recognized… Read More

September 29, 2017 @ 6:47 am By JD Alois  |  

South Korea has announced it will ban all Initial Coin Offerings (ICOs) following a similar action taken  by China. According to a report in Reuters, The Financial Services Commission all ICOs will be halted and trading in cryptocurrencies, such as Bitcoin and Ethereum, must be… Read More

September 28, 2017 @ 10:43 pm By JD Alois  |  

Yesterday, the Australian Securities and Investment Commission (ASIC) published guidance on the Initial Coin Offering (ICO) market. The cautionary note told investors to be diligent when reviewing ICOs for a potential investment while noting security offerings are a regulated activity. FinTech Australia called ASICs move… Read More

September 28, 2017 @ 3:30 pm By JD Alois  |  

As part of the loan or mortgage origination process an applicant must complete form “4506-T”  for the IRS. This gives the lender the right to access a summarized version of their tax transcript, which is used to confirm data points in qualifying their application. Today this… Read More

September 27, 2017 @ 9:32 pm By JD Alois  |  

The Australian Securities and Investment Commission (ASIC) has just published their spin on the burgeoning Initial Coin Offering (ICO) market. John Price, ASIC Commissioner, stated; “We want to ensure innovative firms understand the regulatory framework they may be operating under and ensure they meet any… Read More