On May 12, 2022, Gov. Ron DeSantis signed bill CS/HB 273 (the Bill), amending Florida’s money services business (MSB) laws (i.e., Chapter 560 of the Florida Statutes) to, among other things, define “virtual currency” and address transactions involving “virtual currency.” The amendments to the Florida MSB laws take effect Jan. 1, 2023.
At a speech to the University of Pennsylvania Law School’s Capital Markets Association on April 4, 2022, SEC Chair Gary Gensler took the opportunity to again promote his strong desire to add greater regulation and oversight to the digital asset and cryptocurrency markets. While reminding the audience of the SEC’s mission to protect investors, facilitate
On Nov. 23, 2021, the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, and the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency issued a joint statement summarizing a new “Crypto-Asset Policy Sprint Initiative.”
On June 30, 2021, the U.S. Department of the Treasury’s Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN), in consultation with the U.S. attorney general, federal functional regulators, relevant state financial regulators, and relevant national security agencies, announced new federal anti-money laundering and counter–terrorism financing (AML/CFT) priorities, in accordance with the Anti-Money Laundering Act of 2020 (AML Act).
On Dec. 21, 2020, Congress approved H.R. 133, referred to as the “Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2021” (the Act). The legislation, signed into law by President Trump on Dec. 27, 2020, enhances and expands certain provisions of the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act of 2020 (the CARES Act) (H.R. 748) and changes the Paycheck
On Sept. 25, 2020, California Gov. Gavin Newsom signed into law the California Consumer Financial Protection Law (CCFPL), which was passed by the California Legislature Aug. 31, 2020. The provisions of the CCFPL become effective Jan. 1, 2021.
The stated intent of the CCFPL is to “strengthen consumer protections by expanding the ability of
On Oct. 23, 2020, the U.S. Department of the Treasury, Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) and the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System (FRB) (FinCEN and the FRB collectively, the Agencies), issued a joint notice of proposed rulemaking (Proposed Rule) that would amend the Recordkeeping Rule and Travel Rule regulations issued under the
On Sept. 25, 2020, the SEC issued a No-Action Letter to FINRA, in response to a previously issued Joint Statement by the SEC and FINRA. This No-Action Letter detailed how broker-dealers could operate alternative trading systems that trade digital assets without garnering enforcement action from the SEC for not meeting the custody requirements required under
On Sept. 21, 2020, the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (the OCC) issued guidance pertaining to whether national banks could hold stablecoin reserves. That same day, the Securities and Exchange Commission Strategic Hub for Innovation and Financial Technology Staff (the SEC) issued a statement in response to that guidance, advising whether such digital
On June 11, 2020, the Small Business Administration and the U.S. Department of the Treasury released their latest guidance in the form of “Paycheck Protection Program –Revisions to First Interim Final Rule” (the Revised Interim Final Rule). This Revised Interim Final Rule amends the SBA’s initial interim final rule posted on April 2,