For market participants pivoting toward ESG and digital assets, weighing the issues at the crossroads of these two megatrends is critical.
By Paul A. Davies, Stuart Davis, Simon Hawkins, Nicola Higgs, Yvette D. Valdez, Thomas Vogel, Stephen P. Wink, and Deric Behar
The huge rise in popularity of Bitcoin — and the growing interest by mainstream financial institutions in virtual assets as an investable and tradable asset class…
An NFT is a special, one-of-a-kind digital asset that raises a number of novel legal questions.
By Christian F. McDermott and Calum Docherty
Earlier this month, a blockchain firm bought a US$95,000 print by the British street artist Banksy, only to burn it in a livestreamed video and re-sell it for US$380,000 as a virtual asset called a non-fungible token (NFT) — sparking a flurry of news around what may prove to be this year’s…
As the market heats up for art-related NFTs, buyers should be aware of limitations on their rights to use those works.
By Ghaith Mahmood, Jordan Naftalis, and Veronica Ye
The convergence of blockchain technology and creative intellectual property (IP) through a non-fungible token (NFT) is having a mainstream moment. Media stories abound with reports of artwork, tweets, and other digital media selling for millions of dollars on blockchain marketplaces when they are represented…
As the market for NFTs heats up, market participants should remain mindful of the regulatory implications of complex schemes.
By Stephen P. Wink, Miles P. Jennings, Shaun Musuka, and Deric Behar
As the current crypto boom has progressed, it seemed Decentralized Finance (DeFi) had cemented its position as the dominant new narrative of this cycle. This view is supported by the tens of billions of dollars that have flowed into DeFi protocols…
An FCA report evaluates the chequered implementation of technology change and identifies risks and best practices to help firms better navigate this change.
By Andrew C. Moyle, Alain Traill, and Jagveen S. Tyndall
Of the nearly 1,000 “material incidents” reported to the UK’s Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) in 2019, 17% were caused by change-related activity. It was against this backdrop that, on 5 February 2021, the FCA set out the findings of its…
A new proposal would subject financial institutions and exchanges to onerous recordkeeping and reporting requirements for certain digital currency transactions.
By Miles P. Jennings, Benjamin A. Naftalis, Eric S. Volkman, Margaret Allison Upshaw, and Deric Behar
In a surprise release in the waning days of the Trump administration, the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) division of the Department of the Treasury issued a proposed rule (the Proposal) that would impose significant…
The paper identifies potential gaps in protections for consumers, with a focus on consumer-to-business payments via the Faster Payments System.
By Christian F. McDermott, Claudia Sousa, and Alain Traill
In November, Pay.UK, the retail payments authority, released a summary paper exploring the consumer protection landscape relating to disputed retail payments.
The paper, titled “Consumer Protections in Payments”, was released in the context of changes in the usage of Pay.UK’s systems following recent regulatory…
In a new publication, ISDA explores the benefits of digitization and blockchain solutions for global foreign exchange derivatives markets.
By Yvette D. Valdez, Adam Bruce Fovent, and Deric Behar
As blockchain and distributed ledger technology (DLT) use cases continue to grow across the broad spectrum of financial markets, the International Swaps and Derivatives Association, Inc. (ISDA) is once again stepping into the crossroads of technology and derivatives with the publication of the ISDA …