Tagged: securities and exchange commission

February 26, 2018 @ 11:53 am By JD Alois  |  

We have been hearing for some time now that past issuers of initial coin offerings (ICOs) have been receiving subpoenas from the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). This should come as no surprise to anyone as the SEC has been messaging their concern regarding ICOs… Read More

February 26, 2018 @ 9:32 am By Philip Liu  |  

Two months into 2018, it feels a little like the calm before a regulatory storm in terms of cryptocurrency regulation.  A series of pronouncements and announcements from the SEC toward the end of 2017 and beginning of 2018 gave industry insiders more clarity on what… Read More

February 14, 2018 @ 11:38 am By JD Alois  |  

The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has scheduled its first meeting for 2018 of the Investor Advisory Committee (IAC). The Committee helps to guide the SEC on initiatives that protect individual investor interests. In practice, this largely means investor protection issues. The upcoming meeting includes… Read More

February 7, 2018 @ 9:58 pm By David Felsenthal and Jesse Overall  |  

Truly, it was a tale of two cities. On February 6, 2018, the U.S. Senate Banking Committee held a hearing on the oversight role of the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) in respect of virtual currencies like Bitcoin… Read More

January 30, 2018 @ 3:56 pm By JD Alois  |  

The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has slammed the brakes on another initial coin offering (ICO) that flouted established securities laws. The SEC obtained a court order halting the AriseBank ICO that targeted retail investors to invest in the “world’s first decentralized bank. AriseCoin’s public… Read More

January 26, 2018 @ 9:44 am By JD Alois  |  

  This past week both the Securities and Exchange Commission and the Commodity Futures Trading Commission came out with strong statements warning the exuberant initial coin offering industry (ICO) that regulators will no longer tolerate the flouting of existing securities law. ICOs have increased rapidly… Read More

January 25, 2018 @ 3:49 pm By JD Alois  |  

In another obvious sign that the federal government is ramping up enforcement actions against initial coin offerings that do not file for an appropriate securities exemption or commit other illegal acts such as fraud, CFTC Chairman J. Christopher Giancarlo and SEC Chairman Jay Clayton jointly published… Read More

January 22, 2018 @ 7:16 pm By JD Alois  |  

The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) Chairman Jay Clayton delivered a speech today to the Securities Regulation Institute. While covering several topics, Chair Clayton hit upon the hot subject of initial coin offerings (ICO) and the swirling regulatory environment delivering a stern rebuke to market… Read More

January 19, 2018 @ 9:09 am By JD Alois  |  

Following the announcement by the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) that it had undertaken two enforcement actions against Bitcoin / virtual currency related fraud, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and CFTC issued a joint statement from SEC co-enforcement Directors Stephanie Avakian and Steven Peikin… Read More

January 15, 2018 @ 4:39 pm By Jason Best & Sherwood Neiss  |  

Recently, my company crafted a report for the US Securities and Exchange Commission that summarizes progress on Title III of the JOBS Act of 2012, also referred to Regulation Crowdfunding or Reg CF. This newest securities exemption was added to the options that smaller companies… Read More

January 11, 2018 @ 9:50 pm By JD Alois  |  

The Securities and Exchange Commission has finally filled the two vacant seats on the Commission as Hester M. Peirce and Robert J. Jackson were sworn in today by SEC Chairman Jay Clayton. Peirce and Jackson will join the other two Commissioners, Kara Stein and Michael… Read More

January 10, 2018 @ 10:46 am By JD Alois  |  

Punch TV, perhaps the first potential issuer to attempt to raise capital using updated rules under Reg A+, has had its offer suspended by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The administrative proceeding by the SEC follows an “Offer of Settlement” by Punch TV that… Read More

January 7, 2018 @ 8:00 pm By JD Alois  |  

Anytime I am around a securities attorney (which is quite often) inevitably the 33 Act or the 40 Act comes up in conversation. For normal people (non-attorneys) this legal speak can be confusing, riven by acronyms and stifled by dogma. Yet much of the regulatory… Read More

December 19, 2017 @ 11:14 am By JD Alois  |  

The Securities and Exchange Commission has filed an order to suspend the trading in shares of The Crypto Company (OTC Pink:CRCW). Shares in The Crypto Company had recently risen to over $640 per share. The 52 week low of shares in CRCW were $3.30 each…. Read More

December 18, 2017 @ 2:23 pm By Joshua Ashley Klayman & Jay G. Baris  |  

  This article is written by the authors solely in their personal capacities, and the views expressed are the authors’ own and do not necessarily reflect the views of their employer or any other person.  This article does not constitute, and should not be relied… Read More

December 11, 2017 @ 9:02 pm By JD Alois  |  

In the wake of the SEC’s most recent enforcement action regarding an Initial Coin Offering (ICO) that failed to file for a securities exemption while the issuer, Munchee, clearly promoted the ability for token purchasers to seek an investment return on a “utility” token, SEC… Read More

December 11, 2017 @ 3:53 pm By JD Alois  |  

The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has shut down an Initial Coin Offering (ICO) as conducting an unregistered securities offering. This is the first time the SEC has has halted an ICO where there were no allegations of fraud representing a new shift in approach… Read More

December 4, 2017 @ 1:59 pm By JD Alois  |  

Perkins Coie, a law firm that is very active in the Fintech / Blockchain space, has announced the hiring of a former SEC attorney. Michael S. Didiuk has joined the firm’s Investment Management practice group as a partner in the San Francisco office where he… Read More

December 2, 2017 @ 2:41 pm By JD Alois  |  

This past week, Blockchain at Berkeley was the host to an ICO Financing Conference. Participating at the event were representatives from the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). Blockchain at Berkeley is a student run, independent organization dedicated to the crypto and distributed ledger space. The… Read More

November 30, 2017 @ 12:38 pm By JD Alois  |  

Speaking at the annual SEC Forum on Small Business Capital Formation, William Hinman, Director of Division of Corporation Finance at the SEC, said there are more enforcement actions coming when it comes to Initial Coin Offerings (ICO). Hinman, a former Silicon Valley based corporate attorney, did… Read More