Politics, Legal & Regulation

May 7, 2025 @ 4:22 pm By JD Alois  |  

The SEC’s Small Business Capital Formation Advisory Committee (SBCFAC) met this week to discuss Regulation A. Regulation A or Reg A+ is a securities exemption that received an update under the JOBS Act of 2012 – the legislation that legalized online capital formation (investment crowdfunding). Prior to the JOBS… Read More

May 7, 2025 @ 2:12 pm By JD Alois  |  

The US Federal Reserve’s Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) held rates steady today, as expected by the markets. The target range for the federal funds rate will remain at 4-1/4% to 4-1/2 %. The vote was unanimous in keeping rates the same. The Fed noted that the unemployment… Read More

May 6, 2025 @ 11:02 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

The UK’s Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) has taken a pivotal step toward shaping the future of cryptocurrency regulation by issuing a discussion paper seeking views on the oversight of specific crypto-assets related activities. This move signals the FCA’s intent to address regulatory gaps, foster innovation,… Read More

May 6, 2025 @ 11:08 am By JD Alois  |  

In advance of today’s hearing, the House Financial Services Committee and the Committee on Agriculture have distributed draft legislation that seeks to outline the regulatory environment for digital assets. The draft legislation is extensive, currently sitting at 212 pages. An 8-page section-by-section description is viewable here. Iterations of this… Read More

May 5, 2025 @ 5:38 pm By JD Alois  |  

The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has thrown out another lawsuit targeting a digital asset firm. According to a release, Dragonchain and founder John Joseph Roets are now off the hook from civil litigation. In 2022, the SEC charged Dragonchain with raising $16.5 million in an “unregistered… Read More

May 5, 2025 @ 5:20 pm By JD Alois  |  

The Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) has announced that it has put staff on leave pending an investigation into unnamed transgressions. Last month, the  Acting CFTC Chairman, Caroline Pham, issued a statement on the CFTC Office of Inspector General (OIG) Investigation into Allegations of Telework Violations… Read More

May 5, 2025 @ 4:40 pm By JD Alois  |  

The House Financial Services Subcommittee on Digital Assets, Financial Technology, and Artificial Intelligence and the House Agriculture Subcommittee on Commodity Markets, Digital Assets, and Rural Development will hold a joint hearing to discuss the future of digital assets. Tomorrow (May 6, 2025), the two Subcommittees… Read More

May 5, 2025 @ 12:33 pm By JD Alois  |  

Tomorrow (May 6, 2025), the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), Small Business Capital Formation Advisory Committee (SBCFAC) will meet to discuss the Regulation A, or Reg A+, securities exemption. Reg A existed before the JOBS Act of 2012, but few issuers utilized the exemption. Following… Read More

May 5, 2025 @ 12:02 pm By JD Alois  |  

Tokenization or digital securities may represent the most significant opportunity for distributed ledger technology and the financial services sector. While largely overshadowed by crypto that exists outside the securities realm, regulated digital assets that represent equity, debt, or another type of investment could be a… Read More

May 5, 2025 @ 11:36 am By JD Alois  |  

The Financial Technology Association (FTA) has distributed an update on their policy position alongside Small Business Week. According to the FTA, the following are its top priorities regarding legislation that impacts Fintechs and smaller firms. Help Businesses Start: New businesses must navigate complex compliance and… Read More

May 5, 2025 @ 9:25 am By Omar Faridi  |  

The European Union’s framework for systemically important payment systems (PSs) and central securities depositories/securities settlement systems (CSDs/SSSs) has been deemed complete and consistent with the Principles for Financial Market Infrastructures (PFMI), according to a recent report by the Committee on Payments and Market Infrastructures (CPMI)… Read More

May 4, 2025 @ 10:11 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

The financial services landscape in the European Union and the United Kingdom has undergone significant transformation since the UK’s departure from the EU, marking the end of a harmonized regulatory framework that once relied on passporting rights across EU Member States. This divergence, coupled with… Read More

May 4, 2025 @ 7:55 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) has reportedly updated its App Store guidelines, loosening restrictions on iOS apps that facilitate crypto and NFT transactions. This change comes in response to a U.S. District Court ruling in the ongoing antitrust case brought by Epic Games, marking a pivotal moment for digital… Read More

May 4, 2025 @ 7:15 pm By Michael Wong  |  

Arizona Governor Katie Hobbs has vetoed Senate Bill 1025, a measure that would have allowed the state’s retirement fund to invest in virtual currencies such as Bitcoin. The veto effectively halts a legislative effort that could have made Arizona the first U.S. state to hold… Read More

May 2, 2025 @ 5:10 pm By JD Alois  |  

While crypto trading has boomed globally, few jurisdictions have bespoke rules that regulate it like more traditional exchanges. The UK Financial Conduct Authority is now seeking to bring crypto exchanges into a better-structured regulatory remit, and it is seeking feedback from interested parties. Earlier this… Read More

May 2, 2025 @ 8:25 am By JD Alois  |  

Stablecoins are poised to become payments 3.0 as the technology represents an upgrade to the existing global payments rails. In the UK, the government has just released draft legislation which is deemed to be nearly complete, designed to support privately issued digital currency. Today, the… Read More

May 2, 2025 @ 7:15 am By Omar Faridi  |  

Deloitte’s latest initiatives underscore the critical role of transparency, digitalization, and artificial intelligence (AI) in navigating increasingly complex economic, regulatory, and technological challenges. Two recent updates from the firm—a 2025 Global Tax Policy Survey and the launch of AI Advantage for CFOs—reveal how organizations are… Read More

May 1, 2025 @ 8:12 am By JD Alois  |  

  In the midst of UK Fintech Week, ClearBank has published a report on the UK Fintech ecosystem, addressing its status in the country and what it needs to move forward and grow. The UK has long been a top global Fintech hub, supported by… Read More

May 1, 2025 @ 7:00 am By Omar Faridi  |  

The United Kingdom is taking decisive steps toward regulating the evolving crypto-asset sector with the release of its draft crypto regime, a move that integrates key activities such as trading, custody, lending, and staking into the Financial Services and Markets Act (FSMA) framework. Laura Talvitie,… Read More

April 30, 2025 @ 9:20 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

In a significant development for India’s startup ecosystem, the Enforcement Directorate (ED) reportedly detained Puneet Singh Jaggi, co-founder of BluSmart, from a Delhi hotel on April 25, 2025. The detention is said to be linked to an ongoing investigation into alleged financial irregularities at Gensol… Read More