Crypto Corner

Are We Facing a Pro Crypto-Securities Future in the U.S.? – Announcement of the New SEC Chair and the Future of Bill FIT21

December 16, 2024 | Jacqueline Candella

On December 4, President-elect Trump announced that his pick for the next Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) chair would be Paul Atkins. There seems to be a positive response to the news, as Bitcoin quickly traded over $100,000.

As Malecki Law has previously blogged, the current chair, Gary Gensler, has often been perceived a crypto skeptic. Although crypto fans were seemingly hopeful that Hester Peirce would be appointed, a current commissioner who is also known as “Crypto Mom,” the community does not seem disappointed in the direction of the SEC at all. Malecki Law gets sometimes multiple calls a day from people scammed around crypto based investments. This is likely due to the lack of regulation. If your advisor recommended that you purchase crypto securities against your best interests, and you suffered losses, you may have a claim. You should reach out to a Crypto-Securities law firm in New York, like Malecki Law, to review your situation. If someone in a foreign jurisdiction has your money, you may be out of luck.

Future SEC Chair Atkins’ Background

What is the Potential Impact of the Presidential Election on the Uncertainty of Crypto Regulation?

November 6, 2024 | Jacqueline Candella

Malecki Law’s founder, Jenice Malecki, was recently quoted in a Crypto Times article about crypto regulation as it relates to the impending presidential election.

Ms. Malecki shared her thoughts that no matter who is to be elected as President, that there is one obvious takeaway –“the crypto industry needs regulation.” Ms. Malecki further explained that the current non-regulation hurts investors, like yourself, which also gives room for bad actors to flourish. Did your advisor recommend that you purchase crypto based securities? It may not have been in your best interest based on your investor profile. A Crypto-Securities law firm in New York, like Malecki Law, can help you analyze and conclude whether Regulation Best Interest was violated.

Ms. Malecki and Malecki Law have experience in cases involving crypto based securities, and have seen that there is more work to be done. At least, if the product is clearly a security under the Howey test, the SEC will regulate it. However, if the crypto product is not clearly a security, there is more gray area as to which regulator (SEC or CFTC) has jurisdiction and why. This naturally leaves a gap in regulation, allowing misconduct to not just occur but to succeed without monitoring.

Pending Ethereum Spot ETF Applications – Will the SEC Approve or Deny Them?

March 26, 2024 | Jacqueline Candella

On January 10, 2024, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) approved eleven applications for the first ever Bitcoin Spot exchange-traded funds (ETFs), which have been publicly listed and subsequently trading in the secondary market since their approval. This was the first time that the marketplace had seen an attempt to make crypto-based securities available to a regular retail investor, like yourself. Click here for the related Malecki Law firm blog post [to link to Adam’s general blog about the approval]. If your broker has recommended that you purchase Bitcoin Spot ETFs, you may need to consult with a Crypto-Based Securities lawyer in New York, like the lawyers at Malecki Law, to determine whether that investment recommendation was made in your best interest.

The SEC’s approval of the Bitcoin Spot ETFs may have opened the door for similar Spot ETFs tied to other cryptocurrencies. The SEC’s second round of ETF reviews is currently underway, as there are at least eight issuers with pending applications for Ethereum Spot ETFs, including Fidelity, BlackRock, Invesco with Galaxy, Grayscale, Hashdex, 21 Shares with ARK, VanEck, and Franklin Templeton. These ETFs would work in the same practical sense as the Bitcoin Spot ETFs, except, they would be tied to the cryptocurrency Ethereum rather than Bitcoin. If your financial advisor is recommending that you invest in Ethereum Spot ETFs, if they are approved by the SEC, you should consult with a lawyer from Malecki Law, a Crypto-Based Securities law firm in New York, to see if your advisor is making investment recommendations in your best interest, as required by Regulation Best Interest.

Bitcoin and Ethereum generally maintain the largest market capitalizations for cryptocurrencies, Bitcoin being number one and Ethereum being number two. As of March 26, 2024, Bitcoin had a market capitalization of over $1.3 trillion while Ethereum had a market cap over $425 billion. Based on this, it would make sense for Ethereum Spot ETFs to follow Bitcoin Spot ETFs. However, there may be less optimism for Ethereum. Noelle Acheson, a crypto researcher, author, and host of the Markets Daily podcast, indicated that there is a “conceptual problem for Ether that didn’t apply to bitcoin.” At the same time, others in the industry maintain the belief that Ethereum Spot ETFs make sense (click here for a related Nasdaq article). Did your broker recommend that you invest in crypto-based securities? Did your broker obtain important investor profile information, like your risk tolerance and liquidity needs, before making such a recommendation? If the answer is no, you should speak with a lawyer at a Crypto-Based Securities law firm, like the lawyers at Malecki Law in New York, to review your situation.

Crypto ETFs by a Little Bit – BitWise is up Next

January 14, 2024 | Malecki Law Team

On Wednesday, January 10, 2024, for the first time in U.S. history, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) approved the listing and trading of spot bitcoin exchange-traded funds (ETFs). Among those includes the Bitwise Bitcoin ETF (BITB)—the first spot bitcoin ETF issued by Bitwise Asset Management. Less than two months later, on Friday March 8, 2024, the price of Bitcoin, the largest cryptocurrency by market capitalization, reached an all-time high of more than $70,000. With the inflated price of Bitcoin and its newfound accessibility that BITB provides, there is a crucial question that every investor should have on their mind: is investing in BITB in my best interest? The purchase of these investments, according to Regulation Best Interest, should only be made by an investment recommendation if it is in your best interest after diligent consideration by your financial professional. A Crypto-Securities law firm in New York, like Malecki Law, can help you determine whether Regulation Best Interest was violated.

As demonstrated by its name, an ETF is a pooled investment security that has attributes similar to both a stock and a mutual fund. “Exchange-traded” refers to the security’s ability to be traded on the market like a stock, while “fund” refers to its ability to consist of a diverse allocation of assets like a mutual fund. The concept of Bitcoin ETFs is not new to the world of securities, for example, Bitcoin futures ETFs, or ETFs that invest in Bitcoin Futures contracts (time-limited agreements to buy or sell Bitcoin at some point in the future), have been around since 2021. However, Bitcoin futures ETFs have unappealing features like “roll premiums,” which are costs incurred when selling expiring contracts and buying new ones. Additionally, futures contracts do not accurately track the spot prices of Bitcoin, meaning the immediate or current price of Bitcoin, so returns may never be as high as spot market prices. You may need a Crypto-Securities attorney in New York, like the lawyers at Malecki Law, to analyze your crypto-based investments to determine your potential losses.

On the other hand, spot Bitcoin ETFs do in fact provide investors with the spot price of Bitcoin and do not rely on futures contracts. Spot Bitcoin ETFs hold Bitcoin as its underlying asset, meaning the ETF actually holds an equivalent amount of Bitcoin to back every share of the ETF that is sold. These shares, which are priced to reflect the spot price of Bitcoin, can be traded on traditional stock exchanges. Therefore, purchasing shares of a spot bitcoin ETF is a relatively easy way for investors to gain Bitcoin exposure to his or her investment portfolio.