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June 24, 2022

 
 

Digital Assets Download, Powered by Mayer Brown

A curated mix of insights and headlines that provide a Layer 3 Legal Perspective™ on the digital assets multiverse – created by Mayer Brown’s global Digital Assets, Blockchain & Cryptocurrency group

The latest Digital Assets Download is below. Check out all of our previous editions here.


 

EDITOR’S NOTE: We’ll be switching to our “summer production schedule” in July and August. Our global team will continue to provide legal commentary and insights on events as they occur, but the Digital Assets Download will hit your inbox a little less frequently—on Friday, July 22, and on Friday, August 19. We will resume our biweekly publication schedule on Friday, September 16.

 

 

 
 
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Original Mayer Brown content, perspectives and insights from across our global platform that touch on digital assets, decentralized finance, cryptocurrencies and related fields.

The Lummis-Gillibrand Responsible Financial Innovation Act: What to Know

On June 7, 2022, US Senators Cynthia Lummis (R-WY) and Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY) introduced S. 4356 - the Responsible Financial Innovation Act (RFIA), which aims to establish a US regulatory regime for digital assets. The much-anticipated bill seeks to resolve the long-standing uncertainty about the jurisdiction of financial regulators over digital assets, clarify the taxation of digital assets and decentralized autonomous organizations (DAOs), and establish disclosures and consumer protection obligations on issuers and service providers of digital assets. In our coverage, we look at why the RFIA matters, including six key aspects of the bill, and we discuss its prospects for passage and the early hot-takes from some relevant regulators.

Uncharted Territory: In “MetaBirkins,” Balancing First Amendment and Trademark Rights in a Digital World

On May 18, 2022, SDNY US District Judge Jed S. Rakoff issued a written decision refusing to dismiss Hermes’ trademark infringement claims against Los Angeles designer Mason Rothschild over Rothschild’s “MetaBirkins” non-fungible token (NFT). The lawsuit has been closely watched by trademark lawyers and NFT minters, as it represents a familiar clash between trademark law and free expression but in the very novel context of NFTs. In this piece, we look at the background of the case; the defense argued as well as Judge Rakoff’s decision; and provide takeaways for companies entering the metaverse, launching NFTs and investing in Web 3.0.

 

 

 
 
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A curated selection of headlines and news from around this multiverse—including deals, developments and other disruptions in DeFi.

UK Minister Wants Nation to Be a Crypto Hub, Minus the Criminals. Read More >>

Financial Watchdogs Should Do More to Protect Crypto Investors, Swiss Regulator Says. Read More >>

Cryptocurrency Tech is Vulnerable to Tampering, a DARPA Analysis Finds. Read More >>

Digital Dollar Would Secure Greenback as Global Reserve Currency, Lawmaker Argues. Read More >>

Singapore Grants In-Principle Licenses to Crypto.com, Two Others. Read More >>

Crypto “Smart Contracts” May Need Oversight, Bank of Israel Says. Read More >>

Regulators in Five States Target Celsius Over Withdrawal Freeze: Report. Read More >>

 

*Special thanks to associate Girindra Selleck for his contributions to this edition’s News Node.

 

 

 
 
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Selected events for deeper dives into different parts of the digital assets and DeFi world.

US House Committee on Agriculture Subcommittee on Commodity Exchanges, Energy and Credit Public Hybrid Hearing. June 23, 2022 (View Recording Here). The subcommittee held a hearing titled “The Future of Digital Asset Regulation.”

 

 

 
 
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For those new to the digital assets and DeFi world, each edition of the Digital Assets Download will highlight a different term to help you be a part of the conversation.

Airdrop: An airdrop is a delivery of coins or tokens to wallet addresses. This delivery is made by the issuer of the coin or token, usually to promote or raise awareness of its crypto asset. Airdrops are usually made without payment or other consideration, or in exchange for an actor service in furtherance of the promotion (for example, posting about the currency on social media platforms). While some airdrops are conducted for legitimate purposes, others have been used to facilitate fraudulent activity.

 

 
 
 

 

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