The Capital Commitment

Proskauer on Private Fund Litigation

Tag Archives: cryptocurrency

U.S. Federal Regulators Turn Up the Heat on Cryptocurrency Trading Platforms

By Julia M. Ansanelli, Joshua M. Newville, Seetha Ramachandran and Samuel J. Waldon on Posted in Compliance, Enforcement, Regulation, SEC, Securities Law, White Collar
With new types of digital assets and related business on the rise, federal authorities have been busy investigating.  Recently, the SEC, FinCEN and the CFTC have imposed some notable settlements involving cryptocurrency trading platforms for allegedly operating without appropriate approvals from financial regulatory authorities.  This may be the start of the next wave of government … Continue Reading

Cryptocurrencies and Other Digital Assets: A New Regime

By Margaret A. Dale, Michael R. Hackett, Kirsten E. Lapham, William Komaroff, Timothy W. Mungovan, Dorothy Murray, Joshua M. Newville, Todd J. Ohlms, Seetha Ramachandran, Ana Vermal, Samuel J. Waldon, Jonathan M. Weiss, Anthony M. Drenzek, James Anderson, Alexandra V. Bargoot, William D. Dalsen, Adam L. Deming, David W. Heck, Hena M. Vora and Lucy C. Wolf on Posted in Compliance, Disputes, Enforcement, Private Equity, Regulation, SEC, Securities Law
Cryptocurrencies and digital assets will continue to be an area of intense regulatory focus, but a new administration may bring new regulations. SEC Chairman Gensler has extensive experience with cryptocurrencies and blockchain, including a teaching stint at MIT. However, Gensler has alternated between censure and praise, referring to cryptocurrencies and blockchain both as an “innovative irritant” … Continue Reading

Top Ten Regulatory and Litigation Risks for Private Funds in 2021

By Margaret A. Dale, Michael R. Hackett, Kirsten E. Lapham, William Komaroff, Timothy W. Mungovan, Dorothy Murray, Joshua M. Newville, Todd J. Ohlms, Seetha Ramachandran, Ana Vermal, Samuel J. Waldon, Jonathan M. Weiss, Anthony M. Drenzek, James Anderson, Alexandra V. Bargoot, William D. Dalsen, Adam L. Deming, David W. Heck, Hena M. Vora and Lucy C. Wolf on Posted in Asset Management, Compliance, Cybersecurity, Disputes, Enforcement, Examinations, Hedge Funds, Mergers & Acquisitions, OCIE, Private Credit, Private Equity, Private Equity Litigation, Regulation, SEC, Securities Law, White Collar
The regulatory and litigation risks for private funds are greater than at any time since the financial crisis in 2008. Just a few examples prove the point: the pandemic (which caused extraordinary volatility in revenues and valuations for most asset categories); a new administration in Washington D.C. (with a more muscular regulatory agenda); continued proliferation … Continue Reading

Three Critical Questions That Will (Hopefully) be Answered by the SEC’s Lawsuit against Ripple

By Samuel J. Waldon, Joshua M. Newville and Timothy W. Mungovan on Posted in Disputes, Enforcement, SEC, Securities Law
Late last year, the SEC filed a litigated action in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York against Ripple Labs Inc. and two of its executive officers (collectively, “Ripple”), alleging that Ripple raised over $1.3 billion in unregistered offerings of the digital asset known as XRP. Ripple opted not to file … Continue Reading

Crypto Asset Regulation: Is the US or UK Keeping Up Best With This Emerging Market?

By Joshua M. Newville, Dorothy Murray, Nicholas Petrie and David W. Heck on Posted in Asset Management, Compliance, Enforcement, Regulation, SEC
One driver for the first widely adopted cryptocurrency Bitcoin was to create a store of value that existed outside of government control. It is therefore no surprise that attempts to regulate the rapidly developing crypto asset market have required great efforts from regulators and legislators around the world to keep apace. In this blog, we … Continue Reading

Top Ten Regulatory and Litigation Risks for Private Funds in 2020

By Margaret A. Dale, Michael R. Hackett, Kirsten E. Lapham, Timothy W. Mungovan, Joshua M. Newville, Seetha Ramachandran, Samuel J. Waldon, Jonathan M. Weiss, Anthony M. Drenzek, James Anderson, Alexandra V. Bargoot, William D. Dalsen, Adam L. Deming, David W. Heck, Brian A. Hooven, Christina H. Kroll, Hena M. Vora and Lucy C. Wolf on Posted in Business Development Companies, Compliance, Disputes, Examinations, Hedge Funds, Mergers & Acquisitions, OCIE, Private Credit, Private Equity, Private Equity Litigation, Regulation, SEC, Securities Law, Venture Capital, White Collar
The private fund industry is more in the public eye than ever before.  Private capital and private markets have experienced massive growth over the last two decades, substantially outpacing the growth of public equity. We have witnessed that trend continue during the past year, and have worked with our clients to navigate the greater uncertainty … Continue Reading

The Top Ten Regulatory and Litigation Risks for Private Funds in 2019

By Timothy W. Mungovan, Samuel J. Waldon, Joshua M. Newville, Michael R. Hackett, Anthony M. Drenzek, William D. Dalsen, Brian A. Hooven, Alexandra V. Bargoot, Lucy C. Wolf and Hena M. Vora on Posted in Compliance, Disputes, Examinations, Hedge Funds, Mergers & Acquisitions, OCIE, Private Credit, Private Equity, Private Equity Litigation, Regulation, SEC, Securities Law, Uncategorized, Venture Capital
An increasingly sophisticated and active OCIE division, innovative market disruptors, a maturing credit cycle, and a philosophical change in how the private fund industry views and utilizes litigation are likely to lead to increased regulatory scrutiny and litigation risk for advisers (and their funds) in 2019.  With that backdrop, we are pleased to present our … Continue Reading

SEC Staff Announces 2019 OCIE Examination Priorities

By Anthony M. Drenzek on Posted in Compliance, Hedge Funds, OCIE, Private Equity, Private Equity Litigation, Regulation, SEC, Securities Law, Venture Capital
The SEC’s Office of Compliance Inspections and Examinations has released its annual priorities publication for 2019.  Containing both a look back at the program’s accomplishments for fiscal year 2018 and a look forward into its initiatives for 2019, this annual report sets out important guidance for private fund managers in administering their compliance programs and … Continue Reading

Proskauer Private Investment Funds Group Releases 2018 Annual Review and Outlook

By Anthony M. Drenzek on Posted in Compliance, Hedge Funds, OCIE, Private Equity, Private Equity Litigation, Regulation, SEC, Securities Law, Venture Capital
Proskauer’s Private Investment Funds Group today released its 2018 Annual Review and Outlook for Hedge Funds, Private Equity Funds and Other Private Funds.  This yearly publication provides a summary of some of the significant changes and developments that occurred in the past year in the private equity and hedge funds space, as well as certain recommended … Continue Reading

SEC Extends Registration Requirements for Investment Companies and Broker Dealers to ICOs and other Digital Assets

By Joshua M. Newville, Samuel J. Waldon, Robert E. Plaze and Lucy C. Wolf on Posted in Examinations, Hedge Funds, Regulation, SEC, Securities Law
Fund managers take note – after over a year of warning, this month the SEC announced a pair of settlement orders with respect to registration requirements for a fund and broker dealer operating in the crypto and digital assets space. It was the agency’s first ever enforcement actions applying the investment company and broker-dealer registration … Continue Reading

Mt. Gox Debacle Showcases Cryptocurrency Litigation Concerns

By Joshua M. Newville and Brian A. Hooven on Posted in Compliance, Hedge Funds, Private Equity, Private Equity Litigation
The theft of millions of bitcoins and related failure of cryptocurrency exchange Mt. Gox—recently written about in the Wall Street Journal—provides a perfect example of how cryptocurrency-related issues can blossom into one of our Top Ten Regulatory and Litigation Risks.  The WSJ article chronicles the journey of Kim Nilsson—one of the victims of the $400 … Continue Reading

Regulatory Scrutiny of the ICO Market – What Fund Managers Should Know

By Joshua M. Newville, Anthony M. Drenzek and Brian A. Hooven on Posted in Compliance, Disputes, Private Equity Litigation, Regulation, SEC, Securities Law, Venture Capital
Last week, former CFTC Chairman Gary Gensler explained in remarks at M.I.T. that he believes the second and third most widely used virtual currencies—Ether and Ripple—may have been issued and traded in violation of securities regulations. This comes on the heels of a crackdown on cryptocurrency-related securities by the SEC, which is particularly focused on … Continue Reading

The Top Ten Regulatory and Litigation Risks for Private Funds in 2018

By Timothy W. Mungovan, Joshua M. Newville, Michael R. Hackett, Anthony M. Drenzek, William D. Dalsen, Alexandra V. Bargoot, Brian A. Hooven and Lucy C. Wolf on Posted in Business Development Companies, Compliance, Disputes, Examinations, Hedge Funds, Mergers & Acquisitions, Private Credit, Private Equity, Private Equity Litigation, Regulation, SEC, Securities Law, Venture Capital
With the public equity markets at an all-time high and private equity fund raising setting new records, it might seem counterintuitive to forecast litigation and regulatory risks.  The opposite is true.  Disputes typically follow capital, and the steeper the growth curve, the greater the risk of litigation and regulatory scrutiny.  With that backdrop, we are … Continue Reading

Chairman Clayton Asks Lawyers to Knock it Off with the Unregistered Coin Offerings

By Joshua M. Newville and Jeffrey Neuburger on Posted in Hedge Funds, Private Equity Litigation, Regulation, SEC, Securities Law
In his recent remarks at the Securities Regulation Institute, SEC Chairman Jay Clayton had some stern words for market professionals, especially lawyers, involved in initial coin offerings (ICOs).  He expressed concern that lawyers in the space “can do better” in their role as gatekeepers to the securities markets, particularly in advising clients whether the “coin” … Continue Reading

SEC Speaks on Initial Coin Offerings: Tokens May Be Securities

By Jeffrey Neuburger, Joshua M. Newville and Alexandra V. Bargoot on Posted in Compliance, Examinations, Hedge Funds, News, Private Equity, Regulation, SEC, Securities Law
Initial Coin Offerings (“ICOs”) are generating attention from both investors and the SEC. Investors’ interest is indicated by the more than $1.2 billion that ICOs reportedly have raised so far this year.  Meanwhile, the SEC has recently asserted its authority in the space, releasing a report stating that digital tokens issued by ICO platform “The … Continue Reading
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