Category Archives: Securities
Coinbase Must Face SEC Lawsuit
The U.S. Securities & Exchange Commission (SEC) has made it their mission to crack down on aspects of the cryptocurrency industry in recent months and years, intending to regulate it more strictly for the benefit of its investors. In 2023, the commission charged Coinbase, the world’s largest publicly traded cryptocurrency exchange platform, with operating… Read More »
What Is The Howey Test & How Does It Affect Securities?
The body of law that regulates securities in the United States has been steadily built up since the creation of the Securities & Exchange Commission (SEC) in 1934. One of the most foundational aspects of securities law comes from a U.S. Supreme Court case, SEC v. W.J. Howey & Co, decided in 1946. Howey… Read More »
Attacks On Securities Regulators To Be Decided In 2024
Securities law in the United States is an ever-evolving entity, given its youth, and with every legal decision, securities investors and regulators are required to adapt. In 2024, several significant cases are poised to potentially affect securities regulators on an integral level, forcing major changes for the entire industry. Whether you are an investor… Read More »
Rescheduling Cannabis & The U.S. Securities Market
In early January 2024, the U.S. Department of Health & Human Services (HHS) officially recommended rescheduling cannabis from a Schedule I drug to a Schedule III drug. While this would not lower the amount of drug-related convictions among the general populace, it would open up the possibility of greater research and commerce related to… Read More »
SEC Stock Buyback Rules Overturned In Fifth Circuit
In May, the Securities & Exchange Commission (SEC) adopted a new rule intended to force more public disclosure on companies with regard to stock buybacks. Stock buybacks happen when a company purchases some of its own shares, and they are done for multiple reasons – to boost the stock’s value, to prevent a takeover,… Read More »
Explaining Private Placement Of Securities
If someone is wanting to invest their money in the stock market or in securities, they have many options. The U.S. Securities & Exchange Commission (SEC) requires that securities specifically either be registered with the commission, or qualify for an exemption under the Securities Act of 1933. Securities that qualify for a specific exemption… Read More »
Explaining EDGAR Filings For New Market Participants
In order to comply with U.S. securities law, every publicly traded company must submit reports at regular intervals to the Securities & Exchange Commission (SEC). For some, this amount of paperwork can be extensive – but it can be filed electronically, thanks to the EDGAR (Electronic Data Gathering, Analysis and Retrieval) system. For a… Read More »
Explaining Blue Sky Laws
In the 1920s, prior to the Great Depression, speculative investments were widespread. There was no real oversight of the securities market (the Securities & Exchange Commission did not come about until the mid-1930s) and as such, firms did not have to provide any kind of establishing information about their investments. This contributed significantly to… Read More »
Can Cannabis Companies Issue Securities?
Despite significant gains at the state level, marijuana is still illegal according to U.S. federal law (and Florida state law as well). Because of this, laws originally intended to prohibit potential money laundering create a steep ‘compliance burden’ for financial institutions, making it all but impossible for state-level cannabis facilities to get financing. One… Read More »
US Sues Two Major Cryptocurrency Exchanges Within 24 Hours
The battle between the U.S. Securities & Exchange Commission (SEC) and the cryptocurrency industry has raged for quite some time now, with the federal agency fighting hard to bring the industry under its aegis, and the industry stubbornly refusing oversight. In early June 2023, though, the SEC filed suit against two of the largest… Read More »
