For the first time, questions as to the authority of federal agencies to regulate bitcoin are moving to federal court. According to Bloomberg: “[a] Brooklyn businessman…was charged with promoting digital currencies backed by investments in real estate and diamonds that … Continue Reading
Georgetown Law and Thompson Reuters release “2018 Report on the State of the Legal Market
For a change of pace, but of interest to lawyers and legal academics alike, new research on the market for law, and which carries implications for US firms and their overseas branches: January 10, 2018 — Declining productivity costing firms an … Continue Reading
NAFTA negotiations could extend into 2019, raising risks of termination
With consultations progressing slowly, some commentators are noting the possibility that NAFTA negotiations could drift into 2019. Under such a scenario, a statement of principles would only be available after Mexico’s presidential elections. What this would mean for NAFTA’s substance … Continue Reading
Trump Suggests a Return to TPP Possible
The news, in this case, speaks for itself: President Donald Trump said Thursday that he would consider re-entering the Trans-Pacific Partnership trade pact if he got a “substantially better” deal. Trump, who withdrew the U.S. from the agreement by executive … Continue Reading
TPP is more than a NAFTA Insurance Policy for Canada and Mexico
Just as Mexico and Canada enter into their 6th round of NAFTA negotiations with the United States, the members of the Trans-Pacific Partnership have announced their intention to sign a new pact without the United States on March 8, in … Continue Reading
CFTC to Apply “Heightened Review” to Crypto Products
The Wall Street Journal Reports that the CFTC is in the process of implementing “heightened review” of products trading on exchanges. This marks an interesting challenge for the agency. As the WSJ reports, The CFTC has limited power to constrain growth … Continue Reading
IOSCO Board Issues (Another) Cautionary Note about Cryptocurrencies
IOSCO, the leading standardsetting body for securities regulators, issued another warning concerning the risks of initial coin offerings. Specifically, IOSCO notes, among other things: There are clear risks associated with these offerings. ICOs are highly speculative investments in which investors … Continue Reading
Financial Services Firms Dominate Blockchain Patent Filings
An extremely interesting analysis of patent filings was released by PatentVue’s Alex Lee examining blockchain-related patent filings. After identifying 1.045 patents and pending applications, the report concludes that the major blockchain patent holders are Bank of America, IBM, Mastercard, FMR … Continue Reading
Bitcoin’s recent rise tops that of tulips in 17th century Netherlands
An interesting comparative analysis on bitcoin’s rise was published yesterday by Bloomberg: “[T]he cryptocurrency’s nearly 60-fold increase during the past three years was truly extraordinary[…] It dwarfed the Nasdaq Composite Index’s gain during the headiest days of the 1990s. Going … Continue Reading
European Parliament Could Rein in Regulators’ Discretion over Location of Euro-Clearing
Reuters has released an interesting article reporting that the European Parliament considering plans aimed at softening the discretion European Union regulators have to force London’s main clearing house to relocate, even if it wants to continue doing business in the … Continue Reading