MoFo Tech

August 07, 2018 - Financings, Fintech
Treasury and the OCC Make Significant Fintech Announcements
By: Jeremy R. Mandell
Two key federal government announcements were made on July 31, 2018 related to fintech issues. First, the U.S. Department of the Treasury issued a press release announcing a report entitled “Nonbank Financials, Fintech, and Innovation.” The Report is the fourth and final in a
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July 23, 2018 - Blockchain, Financings, Fintech
Payments and Lending: Trends to Convergence in the Indonesian FinTech Industry
Originally, there were no foreign ownership limits for a non-bank company to act as an e-Wallet provider, e-Money issuer or fund transfer operator, leading to an influx in applications from foreign owned providers in Indonesia. On 7 May 2018, Bank Indonesia (“BI”) published a
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June 19, 2018 - Blockchain, Financings, Fintech, Mergers + Acquisitions
The Journey from Security to Non-Security: SEC Director Comments on Mutability of Token Treatment
By: Spencer D. Klein, Alfredo B. D. Silva and Mark S. Wojciechowski
Many in the blockchain and cryptocurrency community were in a celebratory mood on June 14, 2018, following a landmark speech given by William Hinman, Director for the Division of Corporation Finance of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC”). Director Hinman’s remarks addressed,
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June 12, 2018 - Financings, Fintech
Cashing in on a New Customer Base
In this article, Jake M. Robson and Nick Davies highlight how joint ventures or strategic M&A can often be the most effective way to roll out and scale up a fintech product offering in multiple jurisdictions in southeast Asia. The article was first published
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March 19, 2018 - Regulatory, Blockchain, Financings, Fintech
8 Key Items You Need to Consider Before Staging Your ICO
By: Spencer D. Klein
With over $8.8B raised via Initial Coin Offerings (ICOs) since 2014, and over 1,200 tokens in circulation with a combined market capitalization of over $300B, it’s not surprising that ICOs are an increasingly popular fundraising tool. In this post, we discuss eight key items
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March 19, 2018 - Blockchain, Financings, Fintech
Cryptocurrency Compensation: A Primer on Token-Based Awards
By: Alfredo B. D. Silva
These days more and more companies are using virtual tokens to compensate and incentivize founders, directors, employees, and other service providers. For the most part, these token-based awards emulate traditional equity-based awards, but they differ from those awards in some important ways, particularly when
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March 07, 2018 - Financings, Fintech
E-Money and Electronic Payments: Foreign Investment in the Philippine Financial Technology Sector
The combination of low levels of financial inclusion, a steadily growing GDP and high smart phone usage has resulted in the Philippines becoming a key market in Asia for venture capital and private equity investors, as well as strategic players looking for investment or
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February 23, 2018 - Blockchain, Financings, Fintech
Understanding the CFTC’s Proposed Interpretation of “Actual Delivery” for Cryptocurrency Retail Commodity Transactions
Subject to certain exceptions, the Commodity Exchange Act (CEA) makes it unlawful to enter into a transaction in any commodity with someone who meets the CEA’s definition of a “retail customer.” Nevertheless, many cryptocurrency platforms currently serve retail customers, relying on the CEA’s “actual
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February 08, 2018 - Regulatory, Blockchain, Fintech
Do You Want to Launch an ICO? Please, Listen to the SEC
By: Spencer D. Klein
The Chairman of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), Jay Clayton, urged market professionals who in any way participate in initial coin offerings (ICOs) to “act responsibly.” Having once stated that all the ICOs he’s seen have had “a sufficient number of hallmarks
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January 23, 2018 - Blockchain, Financings, Fintech
SEC Staff Raises Concerns Related to Cryptocurrency ETFs and Mutual Funds
By: Kelley A. Howes
On January 18, 2018, the Securities and Exchange Commission’s (SEC) Division of Investment Management broke its relative silence regarding the recent growth of cryptocurrencies and cryptocurrency-related products. While signaling that registration of funds intending to invest substantially in cryptocurrency and related products is not
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