Politics, Legal & Regulation

May 3, 2016 @ 9:39 am By JD Alois  |  

  The European Commission, as part of the  Capital Markets Union (CMU), has published a working document on investment crowdfunding as it seeks to boost access to capital for SMEs. The relevance of the publication is even more important in light of the tepid economic… Read More

May 2, 2016 @ 8:55 am By JD Alois  |  

Embedded below is the consultation paper crafted by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) in anticipation of creating a regulatory regime for peer to peer lending.  The document sets out to review the various legal frameworks in place around the world for peer to peer… Read More

April 30, 2016 @ 11:39 am By JD Alois  |  

This past week the  Comisión Nacional Bancaria y de Valores (CNBV) published their 7th National Financial Inclusion Report  (Reporte Nacional de Inclusión Financiera). The document (embedded below) spent a good amount of time defining and addressing the various forms of investment crowdfunding. The document was published in advance of… Read More

April 29, 2016 @ 10:04 am By JD Alois  |  

Below is the joint response delivered by several European crowdfunding associations including: The European Crowdfunding Network, The UK Crowdfunding Association, Financement Participatif France and Nederland Crowdfunding.  The document is in support of an initiative to raise the prospectus exemption to €10 million (the Committee on Economic… Read More

April 29, 2016 @ 9:50 am By Therese Torris  |  

  Earlier this year, the crowdfunding sector represented by the European Crowdfunding Network (ECN) the UK Crowdfunding Association, Financement Participatif France and Nederland Crowdfunding had called on the Parliament and the European Council to be very ambitious with the planned revision of the Prospectus Directive…. Read More

April 29, 2016 @ 7:53 am By JD Alois  |  

The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has received a detailed report from the Government Accountability Office (GAO) regarding controls over financial systems and cybersecurity. In November of 2015, the GAO identified “deficiencies” in the SEC’s internal controls over financial reporting. This new report is a… Read More

April 28, 2016 @ 6:01 pm By JD Alois  |  

The HALOS or Helping Angels Lead Our Startups Act (HR 4498) received solid bi-partisan support this week as it was passed by the House of Representatives on a vote of 325 for and 89 against.  This past March the bill easily made its way through… Read More

April 27, 2016 @ 1:46 pm By Erin Hobey  |  

The European Union has put the brakes on regulating blockchain (the technology that underpins bitcoin); an EU parliamentary committee agreed on Tuesday in the latest example of a “softly-softly” approach by authorities towards financial services, according to the release. “We don’t want pre-emptive regulation, but we do… Read More

April 26, 2016 @ 11:38 am By Erin Hobey  |  

According to Reserve Bank of India Deputy Governor R Gandhi, approval of new types of NBFCs (non-banking finance companies) will continue.  Detailed information has not yet been released from the bank, but Gandhi commented while inaugurating the ASSOCHAM summit discussing NBFCs: The Changing Landscape’ reported Mumbai’s Deccan Herald:… Read More

April 25, 2016 @ 7:20 am By JD Alois  |  

The House of Representatives may vote on the “Helping Angels Lead Our Startups Act” (HALOS Act – HR 4498) at some point this week.  The bill was approved by the House Financial Services Committee this past March on a vote of 44 to 13. The… Read More

April 24, 2016 @ 9:08 pm By JD Alois  |  

California is in the process of attempting to pass legislation, once again, to legalize intrastate investment crowdfunding. If the proposed bill becomes law, California will join dozens of other states that enacted similar regulations to help fund small and emerging companies within their boundaries by… Read More

April 22, 2016 @ 7:07 pm By JD Alois  |  

  Last week the House Subcommittee on Capital Markets, part of the powerful House Financial Services Committee, debated several important bills that may boost access to capital for SMEs.  One of the bills, the Fix Crowdfunding Act (HR 4855), has the profound potential to turn… Read More

April 22, 2016 @ 11:00 am By JD Alois  |  

EC Commissioner Jonathan Hill delivered a speech yesterday addressing the Capital Markets Union and other areas of financial services that are important to the economy of Europe. Hill, a UK national and former member of the House of Lords, holds the portfolio for Financial Stability, Financial… Read More

April 21, 2016 @ 10:23 am By JD Alois  |  

Seedrs CEO and co-founder Jeff Lynn has been very vocal on the topic of the UK departing from the European Union.  The “Brexit” referendum is scheduled to take place on June 23rd but predictions are mixed as to whether voters will decide to remain part… Read More

April 20, 2016 @ 11:35 am By JD Alois  |  

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) has published a report on the online payday loan industry. The document, embedded below, analyzes ACH payment requests by a number of online lenders that make (or made) online payday or other high-cost online loans with payments scheduled on… Read More

April 19, 2016 @ 11:32 pm By JD Alois  |  

The Crowd-Sourced Funding bill, Australia’s push for a legislative update for investment crowdfunding regulations, has silently died in the Aussie Senate.  The legislation is listed as “lapsed at prorogation” on the Senate website.  The proposal had endured sector criticism with one industry participant calling the… Read More

April 19, 2016 @ 10:45 am By JD Alois  |  

The European Commission has presented a set of measures intended to support and link national initiatives for the “digitisation of industry”.  The initiative is part of the policy push to improve competition and support industry including, the Capital Markets Union, Energy Union, Single Market Strategy,… Read More

April 18, 2016 @ 7:47 pm By JD Alois  |  

In a letter addressed to the General Accounting Office (GAO), signed by Democratic Senators Jeff Merkley, Sherrod Brown, and Jeanne Shaheen, a request was made to research and make recommendations regarding Fintech and Peer to Peer / Marketplace Lending. The letter, dated April 18, 2016,… Read More

April 16, 2016 @ 2:33 pm By JD Alois  |  

As we recently reported, the Finland Ministry of Finance has published an updated regulatory environment designed to facilitate debt and equity crowdfunding. The goal is to “enhance financial intermediation and thereby economic growth.” The Finnish economy posted GDP growth of 0.5% in 2015, after three… Read More

April 16, 2016 @ 11:07 am By JD Alois  |  

This past week during a hearing at the House Subcommittee on Capital Markets, Raymond Keating of the Small Business & Entrepreneurship Council (SBE Council) delivered prepared remarks to the Representatives in attendance. The title of the hearing was the JOBS Act at Four: Examining Its… Read More