Late last month, New York Department of Financial Services (“DFS”) Superintendent Benjamin Lawsky (“Lawsky”) (accompanied by DFS Assistant Deputy Superintendent Maria Filipakis, General Counsel Danny Alter, and Deputy General Counsel Dana Syracuse) presided over two days (five panels) of virtual currency-related hearings.  (To view any of the panel comments in their entirety, visit http://www.totalwebcasting.com/view/?id=nysdfs.)  The hearings represent the most recent activity by New York’s top financial regulator concerning Bitcoin, which began last August when twenty-two industry participants received subpoenas in connection with Lawsky’s launch of an “information gathering” inquiry.  The hearings appear to have solidified Lawsky’s intent to introduce a new regulatory framework for virtual currency firms doing business in New York.  In light of the various testimonies at the hearings, Lawsky’s announcement raises many questions regarding the purpose and scope of such new regulatory framework.
Continue Reading NEW YORK DFS VIRTUAL CURRENCY HEARINGS POINT TO NEW “BITLICENSE” LAW

The United States Department of Treasury Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (“FinCEN”) supplemented its March 18, 2013 guidance on the applicability of federal money transmission regulations to virtual currency “miners” and investors with two letter rulings on January 30, 2014.  Both rulings are fact specific, but provide information and insight into FinCEN’s views on regulation of various participants in the virtual currency ecosystem under the Bank Secrecy Act (“BSA”).  The rulings establish that:…
Continue Reading FinCEN Issues New Virtual Currency-Related Letter Rulings

True to the schedule he released last week, New York Department of Financial Services (“DFS”) Superintendent Benjamin Lawsky (“Lawsky”) (accompanied by DFS Assistant Deputy Superintendent Maria Filipacas, General Counsel Danny Alter, and Deputy General Counsel Dana Syracuse) presided over two days of virtual currency-related testimony this week.  Noting that he did not want regulation to stifle innovation, Lawsky  maintained a cordial and yet authoritative tone with each of the panels, comprised of carefully-selected academics, law enforcement, investors, and industry participants who were expected to, and did, offer varying views.  The pervasive message of the testimony (offered both in writing and in-person), was that virtual currency is here to stay, and that some amount of regulation was not necessarily a bad thing.  The deepest divides revolved around whether existing regulatory framework was sufficient to mitigate the perceived risks of virtual currency use, and how new regulations should take shape. …
Continue Reading New York Department of Financial Services Scrutinizes Bitcoin

This morning Superintendent Benjamin Lawsky of the New York Department of Financial Services (“DFS”) released a notice detailing the schedule and lineup of the virtual currency hearings he scheduled for next week (January 28th and 29th).  The hearings will be divided into “panels” comprised of investors, academics, law enforcement, regulatory authorities, and crypto currency entrepreneurs.  Some well-known investors (Barry Silbert, Jeremy Liew, Fred Wilson, and Cameron and Tyler Winklevoss) will kick off the hearings on January 28^th; while Cyrus Vance, Jr. (District Attorney of New York County) and Richard Zabel (Deputy US Attorney for the Southern District of New York) will lead the second day of hearings.  Although not all of the panels have been filled, a rough sketch of the topics on the agenda include:…
Continue Reading New York Department of Financial Services Announces Witness Lineup for BitLicense Hearings

Delaware Senator Tom Carper’s quest to mark uncharted Bitcoin-related territory continued this week with a request that the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (“CFTC”) elaborate on any plans it has to regulate the virtual currency industry.  According to Senator Carper, head of the Senate Homeland and Governmental Affairs Committee, “we read about a new venture in the digital currency space nearly every day, [and] it is important that government agencies respond appropriately and in a timely manner with thoughtful policy and oversight. Those willing to take risks and play by the rules should have the opportunity to thrive without the fog of uncertainty.”…
Continue Reading Delaware Senator Challenges the CFTC to Commit to a Bitcoin Regulation Strategy