While federal courts last year recognized that virtual currencies based on blockchain platforms could qualify as securities and/or commodities, there has been some concern that these regulatory structures may not fit all digital tokens under all circumstances. In a recent New York Law Journal column, Robert Schwinger, a partner in the New York office of … Continue Reading
Denmark: updated 18 March 2019 Germany: updated 18 March 2019 Sweden: updated 21 March 2019 Italy: updated 22 March 2019 We have produced a colour coded heat map and table identifying the temporary emergency measures being implemented in EEA jurisdictions, and how financial services provides can benefit from these measures. We recommend that this resource be read in conjunction … Continue Reading
Non-financial commercial companies often secure their derivatives transactions with financial institutions in a manner other than posting cash margin, such as by granting liens on a commercial end-user’s assets. A proposed regulation from the US federal banking regulators to revise risk-based capital rules regarding derivatives in order to implement an international standard may have the … Continue Reading
Two new bills were introduced in the U.S. House of Representatives at the end of January aimed at recommending possible legislative changes to regulate and promote virtual currencies, also known as cryptocurrencies. The first bill, H.R. 922, Virtual Currency Consumer Protection Act of 2019 aims to promote fair and transparent virtual currency markets by examining … Continue Reading
On the heels of the first-ever judicial holding this past summer that a cryptocurrency could qualify as a “security” under federal securities laws, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has brought a wave of new enforcement actions targeting blockchain-based digital token ventures under a variety of provisions in the securities laws. In a recent New … Continue Reading
Issue 11 of our Global Asset Management Quarterly is now available. You can also register to automatically receive each issue as it is released. This publication highlights key developments that will be of interest to, and affect, our asset management clients, including market trends and developments in tax and buy-side regulation globally. Articles on US … Continue Reading
On February 8, 2019, the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency, the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, the Securities and Exchange Commission, and the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (collectively, the “Agencies”) published for public comment a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (the “NPRM”) to amend the Volcker … Continue Reading
On February 14, 2019, the Conference of State Bank Supervisors (“CSBS”) announced several actions that it would be taking to modernize and harmonize state licensing, regulation, and supervision of non-depository financial institutions, including mortgage lenders, money services businesses, and consumer finance companies.… Continue Reading
On January 28, 2019, the US Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (“OFAC”) added Petróleos de Venezuela, S.A., Venezuela’s state-owned oil company and a primary source of the country’s income and foreign currency, to its list of Specially Designated Nationals and Blocked Persons (the “SDN List”). Norton Rose Fulbright has prepared a … Continue Reading
On February 8, 2019, SEC Commissioner Hester Peirce delivered a speech at the symposium ”Protecting the Public While Fostering Innovation and Entrepreneurship: First Principles for Optimal Regulation.” Her remarks, entitled “Regulation: A View from Inside the Machine,” provide insight into how SEC regulators currently view certain technological innovations and how they interpret and apply the … Continue Reading
For the first time, the US Commodity Futures Trading Commission’s (“CFTC”) Division of Market Oversight (“DMO”), Division of Swap Dealer and Intermediary Oversight, and Division of Clearing and Risk published Examination Priorities for the year. While the CFTC has historically published its Rules Enforcement Review of specific commodity exchanges with notes as to areas for … Continue Reading
Companies are being, or have been, approached by US banks and/or their affiliates with which they have derivatives contracts or other qualified financial contracts (QFCs) and asked to amend those agreements to cover a situation where the bank or its affiliates might be put into a receivership situation. The reason why they are getting these … Continue Reading
In a December 12, 2018, letter to a US trade association with members that include broker-dealers in securities (“broker-dealers”), the US Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) extended its no-action relief to broker-dealers who wish to rely on investment advisers to perform the broker-dealer’s obligations under US federal anti-money laundering (“AML”) customer identification program and beneficial … Continue Reading
On January 22, 2019, the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (“FINRA”) released its 2019 Risk Monitoring and Examination Priorities Letter (Regulatory Notice No. 18-20) in which it identifies topics FINRA will focus on in the coming year. FINRA indicates that this year the securities self-regulatory organization will review “firms’ activities through its membership and examination process … Continue Reading
On January 4, 2019, two Colorado senators introduced the “Colorado Digital Token Act,” a bill seeking to exempt digital tokens and cryptocurrencies from certain Colorado state securities laws. In filing the Colorado Digital Token Act, the senators proposed that digital tokens with a “primarily consumptive purpose” that are not marketed to be used for “speculative … Continue Reading
As commercial activity increasingly intertwines with applications of blockchain technology with participants around the world, courts have had to grapple with the personal jurisdiction implications of such arrangements. Will participants in these blockchain applications based outside the United States find themselves subject to U.S. jurisdiction when disputes arise, based on how they have conducted their … Continue Reading
As a result of the United States Congress not adopting an appropriations bill or a continuing resolution to fund specific government departments, agencies or functions, certain federal agencies are currently subject to a partial government shutdown. Below is an overview of how the partial federal government shutdown is affecting financial or other major regulatory agencies: … Continue Reading
On November 29, 2018, the Federal Reserve Board published for public comment a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking that would reorganize the current prudential standards regulatory framework for US banking organizations deemed to be of systemic risk into four separate categories to reflect their risk profiles.… Continue Reading
The Commodity Futures Trading Commission (“CFTC”) published a Request for input on December 17, 2018, seeking public comment and feedback on a set of twenty-five (25) questions to better inform the CFTC’s understanding of the technology, mechanics, and markets for virtual currencies beyond Bitcoin. … Continue Reading
On December 3, 2018, the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, the National Credit Union Administration, the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency, and the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (“FinCEN”), (collectively, the “Agencies”) issued a joint statement (“Joint Statement”) urging banks to consider, evaluate and potentially implement … Continue Reading
Over the last few months, US economic sanctions have taken the front pages as the Trump Administration has reinstated certain sanctions aimed at Iran following the United States withdrawal from the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (“JCPOA”). While the so-called “snapback” reinstated sanctions provisions increase the risk for non-US companies, recent enforcement actions against non-US … Continue Reading
On November 21, 2018, the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (the “OCC”), the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System (the “Board”), and the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (the “FDIC”) (collectively, the “Federal Banking Agencies” or the “Agencies”) jointly issued a notice of proposed rulemaking (the “NPR” or the “Proposal”) that would … Continue Reading
On November 16, 2018, the Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) issued a statement on the application of federal securities laws to the issuance and trading of, and investment in, digital asset securities. While the statement encourages technological innovations that benefit investors and capital markets, it emphasizes that market participants must still adhere to federal securities … Continue Reading
On November 13, 2018, the CFTC published its Final Rule (Final Rule) setting its de minimis exception threshold to swap dealer registration and regulation requirements at an aggregate gross notional amount (“AGNA”) threshold of $8 billion in swap dealing activity. Under the de minimis exception as originally adopted, a person would not be deemed … Continue Reading
