August 25, 2017 @ 4:06 pm By JD Alois  |  

LendingClub (NYSE:LC) has been hit with a lawsuit that names former CEO Renaud Laplanche alongside current and former board members and former CFO Carrie Dolan. The complaint, filed in the Court of Chancery in Delaware, states; “Throughout the period December 11, 2014 and continuing through… Read More

August 15, 2017 @ 11:31 am By Ryan Feit  |  

Some equity crowdfunding platforms are putting startups at serious risk.  Working with a platform that doesn’t structure your deal appropriately could jeopardize your ability to raise future capital or worse, force you to become a public reporting company. The emergence of equity crowdfunding is a… Read More

August 4, 2017 @ 6:09 pm By Amy Wan  |  

  On Tuesday, July 25, the SEC announced that Initial Coin Offerings, also called Token Sales, in many cases may be considered securities. Of course, this probably terrifies a large amount of the ICO community. So how do you actually legally raise an ICO? Your… Read More

August 1, 2017 @ 1:00 pm By Jonathan Nieh  |  

  Disclaimer: Although I am a securities attorney, I am not your securities attorney, so the following is in no way legal advice. If you are thinking about doing an ICO or token sale, I highly recommend talking to and hiring your own attorney. If you’ve been… Read More

July 30, 2017 @ 2:17 pm By JD Alois  |  

In the aftermath of the SEC statement on Initial Coin Offerings and their intent to crack down on issuers in breach of securities law we reached out to Morrison Foerster for commentary on the question as to when an ICO is in fact a security…. Read More

July 25, 2017 @ 8:22 pm By JD Alois  |  

The SEC Division of Corporate Finance and Enforcement have jointly published a public statement regarding the DAO investigation and the ensuing report and cautionary statement on ICOs. The two powerful branches of the SEC came together in recognition of the changing world of finance as… Read More

July 25, 2017 @ 7:03 pm By Amy Wan  |  

My Facebook Messenger was blowing up this afternoon. “OMG Have you seen this?” “What does this mean?” “Can you explain what this says in stupid people talk?” They were all referring to today’s SEC  announcement on ICOs. So, I’ll take 15 minutes from what was… Read More

July 25, 2017 @ 5:32 pm By JD Alois  |  

The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) issued an investigate report on the fast growing Initial Coin Offering (ICO) market that will squelch the ICO market, at least in the US. The report, embedded below, was specifically directed at the DAO or Decentralized Autonomous Organization that… Read More

July 25, 2017 @ 1:02 pm By Samantha Hurst  |  

Snopes.com, a website that describes itself as the definitive Internet reference source for urban legends, folklore, myths, rumors, and misinformation, launched a crowdfunding campaign on GoFundMe to stop legal woes from causing it to shut down for good. Launched in 1994 by founder David Mikkelson,… Read More

July 25, 2017 @ 9:00 am By JD Alois  |  

  Bootstrap Legal is a new Legaltech and Fintech startup that has officially launched today. Bootstrap Legal is a software service that automates the drafting of complex legal documents for smaller real estate projects. The service was luanched in recognition of the fast changing world… Read More

July 19, 2017 @ 10:24 pm By JD Alois  |  

  The heat is rising for Elio Motors  (OTCQX: ELIO) as the State of Louisiana has fined the aspiring vehicle company $545,000.  The Louisiana Motor Vehicle Commission has accused Elio Motors of operating as a manufacturer/dealer of recreational products without a license. On the bright… Read More

July 17, 2017 @ 10:25 pm By JD Alois  |  

Manatt, Phelps & Phillips, LLP, has announced new co-chairs of the firm’s financial services group. Three attorneys have been appointed to this leadership role including Brian Korn, Donna Wilson and Richard Gottlieb. The three attorneys are spread across the country with Gottlieb located at the firm’s… Read More

July 15, 2017 @ 1:50 pm By JD Alois  |  

The Initial Coin Offering (ICO) space has been rocketing recently. It seems that every few days the next hot ICO is raising incredible sums of money from global investors. ICOs have plenty of supporters and detractors with most followers advising caution in this largely unregulated… Read More

July 13, 2017 @ 9:57 pm By Jonathan Nieh  |  

Earlier this month, the Delaware House of Representatives passed amendments to state law that would make it explicitly legal for stocks to be traded on a blockchain, the technology behind cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin and Ether. According to an article on Coindesk, the amendments relating to… Read More

July 9, 2017 @ 12:37 pm By Jonathan Nieh  |  

Regulation Crowdfunding (Reg CF), which allows for true equity crowdfunding by small businesses and start-ups, has been in effect for over a year now. The amount of capital raised since Reg CF was launched last year has been steadily increasing as well as the number… Read More

June 5, 2017 @ 9:25 am By Joshua G. Hamilton, James H. Moon & Bret M. Geckeler  |  

Crowdfunding regulations were enacted with the goal of providing small businesses access to capital without imposing arduous registration and disclosure burdens.[i]  In that regard, the regulations have shown significant promise. Commentators have rightfully highlighted the substantial benefits to both issuers and investors based on their… Read More

May 30, 2017 @ 2:25 pm By Anthony Zeoli  |  

What was previously a relatively innocuous industry sector, the financial technology (or “Fintech”) industry has exploded over the past few years. With the litany of new Fintech startups and existing Fintech businesses, and even Fintech specific incubators and accelerators popping up, the Fintech revolution is… Read More

May 20, 2017 @ 4:30 pm By Scott Andersen & George S. Georgiades  |  

With the one year anniversary of Crowdfunding under Regulation Crowdfunding occurring on May 16th, business executives and compliance officers at registered Crowdfunding Portals (CFPs) should be actively preparing for their first regulatory examination by the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA).   FINRA’s 2017 exam cycle… Read More

May 14, 2017 @ 5:44 pm By JD Alois  |  

Earlier this month I was running CNBC in the background and a commercial came up that caused me to pause. On the screen was a besuited old white male pitching the next great investment. Coming off a bit like a used-car salesman, I learned later… Read More

May 9, 2017 @ 6:59 am By Jonathan Nieh  |  

Welcome to Part 1 of a series discussing the various ways an issuer can easily screw up their offering. In this part, we’ll be talking about general solicitation as it applies to Regulation D (Reg D) offerings. For those that are unaware, Reg D is, for… Read More