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‘Enforcement 40’ for 2020
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Join the Securities Litigation and Enforcement Group on LinkedInSEC Rejects Grayscale’s Spot Bitcoin ETF Application
Grayscale Investments’ application to convert its $13.5 billion Grayscale Bitcoin Trust (GBTC) into a spot-based bitcoin ETF was denied by the SEC on Wednesday despite the company’s extensive efforts to win approval (Grayscale is owned by Digital Currency Group, which is also the parent company of CoinDesk). The SEC stated in its filing that the […]
FCA Says the Crypto Industry Doesn’t Want Them to regulate DeFi
Crypto advocates told the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), the U.K.’s financial watchdog, that decentralized finance (DeFi) shouldn’t be regulated because it is too difficult to do so. In May, the FCA hosted its first two-day CryptoSprint, where 184 industry participants from the U.K. and other countries gathered to hear the FCA’s thoughts on how the […]
Crypto Loves Its Shadow Banks – Bloomberg
…If you are a person who invents a business like this, and you are able to do it for a year or two and squirrel away the $2.4 billion, it is very very good for you and you can buy yachts and stuff. But in the long run, if you are borrowing at 8% and […]
CEO Stock Sales Raise Questions About Insider Trading – WSJ
A Wall Street Journal analysis of 75,000 prearranged stock sales by corporate insiders, using a comprehensive compilation of the data, shows that about a fifth of them occurred within 60 trading days of a plan’s adoption. The timing in aggregate made the trades more profitable: On average, those trades preceded a downturn in share price […]
SEC rejects Grayscale’s bid to convert GBTC to a Bitcoin ETF
The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has denied Grayscale’s proposal to convert its flagship product into a spot-bitcoin exchange-traded fund (ETF). The securities regulator issued a rejection order for the conversion of Grayscale’s Bitcoin Trust (GBTC) today after repeated extensions on the application. The SEC has yet to allow a spot-bitcoin ETF to list, though […]
Crypto Litigation May Grow In Absence Of Regulatory Scheme – Law360
Despite its recent thrashing, the cryptocurrency market is still valued at a little over $915 billion. That high market capitalization, alongside widely discussed regulatory uncertainty, has created fertile ground for litigation and enforcement to grow. If recent trends are any indication, they are doing just that. Three recent cases illustrate how uncertainty has led to […]
SEC Includes Novel Probe Into Lawyers’ Actions in EY Settlement – WSJ
Wall Street’s top cop is putting the screws to one of the world’s biggest audit firms—and going after its lawyers, too. As part of a $100 million enforcement action announced Tuesday against Ernst & Young, the Securities and Exchange Commission demanded the firm undertake a separate, follow-up investigation into the actions of its own lawyers […]
Denver Regional Director Kurt L. Gottschall to Leave SEC
The Securities and Exchange Commission today announced that Kurt L. Gottschall, the Director of the Denver Regional Office since 2018, is leaving the agency after more than 22 years of service. Jason J. Burt and Thomas M. Piccone will become the office’s Co-Acting Regional Directors when Mr. Gottschall departs in early July. Source: SEC.gov | […]
EY Cheating a ‘Wake-Up Call’ as SEC Targets Market Gatekeepers
Ernst & Young LLP’s $100 million fine for unchecked cheating on ethics tests and other training, coupled with a string of similar cases at other firms, threatens to undermine a profession that sells itself as a trusted protector of the public’s interest, from taxpayers to shareholders. The latest news means affiliates of three of the […]
Tracy S. Combs Named Director of SEC’s Salt Lake Regional Office
The Securities and Exchange Commission today announced that Tracy S. Combs has been named Director of the Salt Lake Regional Office. Tanya Beard, who has served as Acting Director since January 2022, remains as Assistant Regional Director of Enforcement. Source: SEC.gov | Tracy S. Combs Named Director of SEC’s Salt Lake Regional Office