Perspectives and insights from Mayer Brown lawyers and other thought leaders that touch on digital assets, decentralized finance, cryptocurrencies and related fields.
Defining Digital Asset Securities: US District Court Issues Summary Judgment Rulings in SEC v. Ripple Labs
In a closely-watched ruling, on July 13, 2023, a US federal court made several key determinations on the question of whether digital tokens are “securities” for US securities law purposes. While the Court’s decision provides a number of meaningful rulings, it leaves many questions unanswered and will not be the final chapter in this long-running dispute. In this Legal Update, members of Mayer Brown’s Global Digital Assets Group examines the key takeaways from the ruling, what questions remain unanswered, and what the Court’s decision means for digital assets in the United States.
Into the Woods: US Congress Provides a Roadmap to Solving Cryptocurrency Tax Issues
The US Joint Committee on Taxation has just released its report on the federal income tax uncertainties affecting the trading and investing in digital assets, including cryptocurrencies. In certain cases, the Joint Committee highlighted the uncertainty without providing any proposed resolutions. In other cases, the Joint Committee provided guidance that is consistent with positions being taken by market participants. In addition, senators Cynthia Lummis and Kirsten Gillibrand have just proposed legislation intended to reduce market risk in the stablecoin market. This bill has a tax provision that would affect affiliated groups filing consolidated tax returns with cryptocurrency depositories. Mark Leeds, of the New York office of Mayer Brown, condenses these developments in the attached Legal Update.
Catawba Indian Nation Passes Banking Code Intended to Attract Fintech Companies
The Catawba Indian Nation recently passed a new Banking and Financial Services Code as part of the Tribe’s efforts to build a “Digital Economic Zone” that is tailored to attract banks and fintech companies to its small tribal reservation outside of Charlotte, North Carolina. The Code presents a novel innovation in the e-banking industry, that, if successful, could provide a template for replication by numerous Native American tribes across the country. However, substantial legal barriers exist that will require alterations to existing law before the Catawba Nation’s desire for tribally chartered banks can become a reality. Members of the Mayer Brown team describe this in more detail in a posting for the Fordham Journal of Corporate and Financial Law.
