Fintech

  • May 13, 2024

    CFTC Hits Crypto Firm With First-Ever Registration Claims

    A Seychelles-incorporated entity has agreed to pay nearly $1.8 million in penalties and disgorgement to end U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission allegations it failed to register as a futures commission merchant in what the CFTC described Monday as a first-of-its-kind action involving digital asset exchanges.

  • May 13, 2024

    Sens. Slam DOJ's Money Transmitting Biz Interpretation

    A pair of U.S. senators say they have "significant concerns" about how the U.S. Department of Justice is interpreting the definition of "money transmission" in two recent criminal actions over crypto mixers, warning that such an interpretation "threatens to criminalize core elements of Bitcoin and other crypto networks."

  • May 13, 2024

    Kabbage Inks 2 FCA Deals With Feds Totaling $120M

    Bankrupt online lender Kabbage Inc. has agreed to pay $120 million in two separate deals to resolve allegations it submitted thousands of false claims for loan forgiveness and operated without adequate fraud controls in place, the U.S. Department of Justice announced Monday.

  • May 13, 2024

    SEC Tells 3rd Circ. Coinbase Can't Force Crypto Rulemaking

    The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission has told the Third Circuit that it already "reasonably explained" why it denied Coinbase's petition for crypto rulemaking and that it shouldn't have to retool its policy priorities just because crypto firms find it challenging to comply with existing laws.

  • May 13, 2024

    Binance Says Sullivan & Cromwell, FRA To Serve As Monitors

    Crypto exchange Binance said Monday that the federal government has selected a Sullivan & Cromwell LLP partner and a Forensic Risk Alliance founding partner to serve as independent third-party monitors overseeing its compliance with the terms of its $4.3 billion settlement and guilty plea over money laundering, bank fraud and sanctions violations.

  • May 13, 2024

    White House Bars Real Estate Deal Near Air Force Base

    President Joe Biden is ordering a recent purchaser of real estate near an Air Force base in Wyoming to sell portions of the property, based on a public tip and a finding from the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States that cryptocurrency mining there presents a national security risk.

  • May 13, 2024

    FinTech Atty Moves From R3 To BakerHostetler In SF

    BakerHostetler has added to its San Francisco office a former counsel and head of government relations at digital finance company R3, bolstering its business practice, its blockchain technologies and digital assets team and its financial services team, the firm announced Monday.

  • May 13, 2024

    Skadden Guides Squarespace On $6.9B Go-Private Deal

    Squarespace Inc. said Monday it has agreed to a $6.9 billion buyout by private equity firm Permira, with Skadden Arps Slate Meagher & Flom LLP serving as lead counsel to the website building company and at least six additional firms guiding the various parties.

  • May 10, 2024

    Reddit Accused Of Charging Advertisers For Fake Clicks

    An artificial intelligence trading platform hit Reddit with a proposed class action on behalf of advertisers alleging that it has been charged for fraudulent "clicks" while promoting its business on the social media company's website, according to the suit filed in California federal court.

  • May 10, 2024

    SEC Opposes Quick Appeal Of 'Crystal Clear' Coinbase Order

    The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission on Friday urged a Manhattan federal court to reject Coinbase's bid for a Second Circuit review of an order allowing an agency enforcement action to proceed, saying the company's cries of uncertainty over how securities laws apply to crypto assets ignore the "crystal-clear" order it is trying to contest.

  • May 10, 2024

    CFPB's Credit Card Late Fee Rule Halted By Texas Judge

    A Texas federal judge on Friday stayed the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau's $8 credit card late fee standard, granting a preliminary injunction sought by the U.S. Chamber of Commerce and other industry groups that are challenging the legality of the agency rule.

  • May 10, 2024

    Kraken Says SEC's Crypto Theory Would 'Gut Howey'

    Crypto exchange Kraken told a California federal judge that the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission's theory of why token sales on public exchanges offend securities laws could lead to a "significant reordering of the U.S.'s financial regulatory structure" if the agency's enforcement action against its parent companies is upheld.

  • May 10, 2024

    Financial Tech Co. Wants New Trial In $7.8M Breach Suit

    A financial technology company ordered to pay more than $7.8 million to an Atlanta-area capital recruiting firm for violating an agreement to pay the recruiter to connect it with investors has asked a Georgia federal judge for either a new trial or judgment as a matter of law.

  • May 10, 2024

    Ex-Pillsbury Communications Leader Joins Dickinson Wright

    Dickinson Wright PLLC announced that a longtime Pillsbury Winthrop Shaw Pittman LLP attorney who previously served as chair of the firm's communications practice has joined its Washington, D.C., office as a member.

  • May 10, 2024

    CFTC Floats Ban On Election Betting Contracts

    A divided U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission approved a proposed rule Friday that would ban trading on the outcome of elections, further solidifying its contested position that such activities constitute illegal "gaming" and threaten to thrust the agency into the role of an "election cop."

  • May 09, 2024

    AI-Created Database Isn't Copyrightable, Job Search Co. Says

    Job searching platform Tarta.ai has urged a California federal judge to toss a suit accusing it of stealing rival Jobiak LLC's automated database and using it for its own job postings, arguing that Jobiak's website is not subject to copyright protection because it's powered by artificial intelligence.

  • May 09, 2024

    Amazon, Walmart Face Dem Questions Over 'Dynamic Pricing'

    Senate Banking Committee Chair Sherrod Brown on Thursday raised concerns to Amazon and Walmart about corporations hiking prices by exploiting customer data and pricing algorithms, saying it undermines consumers' ability to comparison shop and save money.

  • May 09, 2024

    Fed. Circ. Wary Of Undoing Gilstrap's Toss Of Banking IP Suit

    The Federal Circuit didn't seem convinced Thursday morning that a patent case against online stockbroker TD Ameritrade had been wrongly tossed out of court, with a judge at one point telling banking patent owner Island Intellectual Property that "this is all abstract."

  • May 09, 2024

    Attys Want $102M In Fees In Stock Loan Antitrust Deal

    Quinn Emanuel Urquhart & Sullivan LLP and Cohen Milstein Sellers & Toll PLLC attorneys asked for $102 million in fees for settling claims from investors that major banks colluded to avoid modernizing the stock loan market, saying the long and complex nature of the case warrants the payout.

  • May 09, 2024

    CFPB's Chopra Trains Sights On Credit Card Rewards

    Consumer Financial Protection Bureau Director Rohit Chopra said Thursday that his agency will be taking aim at what it is describing as "concerning patterns" in the credit card industry's rewards program practices, including stealthy changes to program benefits and manipulation of rewards point values.

  • May 09, 2024

    CFTC Moves For Win Over Gemini's 'Misleading' Statements

    The U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission has told a New York federal judge there's no need to try claims that Gemini Trust Co. LLC misled the regulator on a bitcoin futures contract since discovery "confirmed" that the cryptocurrency exchange made "scores of materially false or misleading statements and omissions."

  • May 09, 2024

    Binance Fined $4.4M By Canadian Regulator

    Canada's anti-money laundering watchdog levied a 6 million Canadian dollars ($4.38 million) fine against crypto exchange Binance after the firm allegedly failed to register as a money services business and didn't report thousands of large transactions on its platform.

  • May 08, 2024

    High Court Ruling May Shake Up CFPB's Litigation Docket

    A U.S. Supreme Court ruling that may come as soon as Thursday could decide the fate of not only the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau's funding structure but also numerous pending enforcement actions the agency has brought around the country. Here, Law360 surveys what's at stake and where.

  • May 08, 2024

    New Treasury Rule Amps Up Reporting Burden For Banks

    The U.S. Department of the Treasury introduced an interim final rule Wednesday that refines and further expands recent increases in reporting requirements, including a new obligation for financial institutions to notify the federal government any time they unblock frozen assets.

  • May 08, 2024

    Digitex Founder Pleads Guilty To Bank Secrecy Act Violation

    The founder of Digitex Futures Exchange has pled guilty to violating the Bank Secrecy Act by refusing to implement policies designed to prevent money laundering on his cryptocurrency futures platform.

Expert Analysis

  • How Firms Can Ensure Associate Gender Parity Lasts

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    Among associates, women now outnumber men for the first time, but progress toward gender equality at the top of the legal profession remains glacially slow, and firms must implement time-tested solutions to ensure associates’ gender parity lasts throughout their careers, say Kelly Culhane and Nicole Joseph at Culhane Meadows.

  • 7 Common Myths About Lateral Partner Moves

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    As lateral recruiting remains a key factor for law firm growth, partners considering a lateral move should be aware of a few commonly held myths — some of which contain a kernel of truth, and some of which are flat out wrong, says Dave Maurer at Major Lindsey.

  • Following The Road Map Toward Quantum Security

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    With the Financial Conduct Authority’s recent publication of a white paper on a quantum-secure financial sector, firms should begin to consider the quantum transition early — before the process is driven by regulatory obligations — with the goal of developing a cybersecurity architecture that is agile while also allowing for quantum security, say lawyers at Cleary.

  • Basics Of Bank Regulators' Push For Discount Window Use

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    As the Federal Reserve and Office of the Comptroller of the Currency emphasize short-term liquidity risk management as central to preventing spring 2023-style bank collapses, banks should carefully tune into regulators’ remarks encouraging use of the Fed’s discount window, which some policymakers identify as a key component in the evolution of liquidity regulation and backstop lending, say attorneys at Arnold & Porter.

  • Series

    Cheering In The NFL Makes Me A Better Lawyer

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    Balancing my time between a BigLaw career and my role as an NFL cheerleader has taught me that pursuing your passions outside of work is not a distraction, but rather an opportunity to harness important skills that can positively affect how you approach work and view success in your career, says Rachel Schuster at Sheppard Mullin.

  • Communication Is Key As CFPB Updates Appeals Process

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    Though a recently updated Consumer Financial Protection Bureau rule expands financial institutions' abilities to appeal supervisory decisions, creating strong relationships and open communication channels with CFPB examiners may help resolve disputes faster than the more cumbersome formal process, says Jason McElroy at Saul Ewing.

  • Considerations For Disclosing AI Use In SEC Filings

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    Recent remarks from U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission Chair Gary Gensler should be heard as a clarion call for public companies to disclose artificial intelligence use, with four takeaways on what companies should disclose, says Richard Hong at Morrison Cohen.

  • Unpacking The New Russia Sanctions And Export Controls

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    Although geographically broad new prohibitions the U.S., U.K. and EU issued last week are somewhat underwhelming in their efforts to target third-country facilitators of Russia sanctions evasion, companies with exposure to noncompliant jurisdictions should pay close attention to their potential impacts, say attorneys at Shearman.

  • Args In APA Case Amplify Justices' Focus On Agency Power

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    In arguments last week in Corner Post v. Federal Reserve, the U.S. Supreme Court justices paid particular importance to the possible ripple effects of their decision, which will address when a facial challenge to long-standing federal rules under the Administrative Procedure Act first accrues and could thus unleash a flood of new lawsuits, say attorneys at Snell & Wilmer.

  • Series

    ESG Around The World: Gulf Cooperation Council

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    The Gulf Cooperation Council is in the early stages of ESG policy implementation, but recent commitments by both states and corporations — including increases in sustainable finance transactions, environmental commitments, female representation on boards and human rights enforcement — show continuing progress toward broader ESG goals, say attorneys at Cleary.

  • Steps For Companies New To Sanctions Compliance

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    Businesses newly required to implement compliance programs due to the increased breadth of mandatory sanctions and export controls, including 500 additional Russia sanctions announced last Friday, should closely follow the guidance issued by the Office of Foreign Assets Control and other regulators, say Jennifer Schubert and Megan Church at MoloLamken.

  • Bank Secrecy Act Lessons For Casinos After DOJ Settlements

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    The U.S. Department of Justice's recent settlements with the MGM Grand and Cosmopolitan casinos, resolving an investigation into alleged violations of the Bank Secrecy Act, signal a shift in the DOJ's enforcement focus and provide insight into potential pitfalls in anti-money laundering compliance programs, say attorneys at Jenner & Block.

  • What To Know About OCC Proposals For Bank Merger Review

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    The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency's proposed changes to the agency's bank merger review process could exacerbate industry concerns with long and unpredictable processing periods because the proposal is ambiguous with respect to how the OCC will view certain transactions, say attorneys at Simpson Thacher.

  • 6 Pointers For Attys To Build Trust, Credibility On Social Media

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    In an era of information overload, attorneys can use social media strategically — from making infographics to leveraging targeted advertising — to cut through the noise and establish a reputation among current and potential clients, says Marly Broudie at SocialEyes Communications.

  • Del. Ruling Stands Out In Thorny Noncompete Landscape

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    In Cantor Fitzgerald v. Ainslie, the Delaware Supreme Court last month upheld the enforceability of forfeiture-for-competition provisions in limited partnership agreements, providing a noteworthy opinion amid a time of increasing disfavor toward noncompetes and following a string of Chancery Court rulings deeming them unreasonable, say Margaret Butler and Steven Goldberg at BakerHostetler.

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