Welcome to Shearman & Sterling’s FinTech Blog, where we provide you with insight on key trends in the FinTech ecosystem. Here you can find relevant information with the latest on digital banking, FinTech regulation, digital assets, blockchain, AI, and more.
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Shearman & Sterling Launches FinTech Regulatory Sandbox Map Update
05/17/2019Shearman & Sterling’s FinTech Foundry last week updated its FinTech regulatory sandbox map, which provides an interactive look at the over 40 FinTech regulatory sandboxes located throughout the world. The updated map accounts for the launch of four new FinTech regulatory sandboxes, including those in Kenya, South Korea, the United Kingdom (Information Commissioner's Office) and the United States (Utah).
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Shearman & Sterling Launches Interactive FinTech Regulatory Sandbox Survey
03/28/2019Through our FinTech Foundry, Shearman & Sterling today has launched an interactive survey of the FinTech regulatory sandboxes located throughout the world. Each point on the map indicates the existence of a regulatory sandbox and a user may click to get further information such as launch date, governing commission, law & regulations and sandbox environment.
Regulatory sandboxes provide a controlled environment for eligible FinTech firms to conduct live testing in under regulatory supervision. The number of regulatory sandboxes worldwide has grown significantly over the past two years, as now over 30 countries and jurisdictions have launched sandbox initiatives, with several others set to follow suit.
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Federal Reserve Board Governor Speaks on Cryptocurrencies, Digital Currencies, and Distributed Ledger Technologies
5/18/2018On May 15, 2018, Federal Reserve Board Governor Lael Brainard delivered a speech at the Decoding Digital Currency Conference, sponsored by the Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco, outlining some of her own thoughts on cryptocurrencies, digital currencies, and distributed ledger technologies.
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SEC Issues Statement on Potentially Unlawful Online Platforms for Trading Digital Assets
03/07/2018On March 7, 2018, the SEC issued a statement warning investors of potential risks involving digital asset exchanges. The statement aims to protect investors trading digital assets through online platforms and serves as a warning shot to exchanges dealing in digital assets that may be securities.
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Top Federal Securities and Commodities Regulators Testify on Virtual Currency Regulation Before Senate Committee
02/07/2018A cross-functional team of partners including Jay Baris and Nathan Greene of the Investment Funds group, Donna Parisi and Geoffrey Goldman of the Derivatives group, Lona Nallengara of the Capital Markets group, and Reena Sahni of the Financial Institutions Advisory and Financial Regulatory group authored an article entitled, “Top Federal Securities and Commodities Regulators Testify on Virtual Currency Regulation Before Senate Committee.” The article highlights the February 6 SEC and CFTC discussion with a Senate committee regarding the role of their respective agencies in regulating virtual currencies and virtual currency-related activities.
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Cryptocurrencies: A Big Week for U.S. Regulatory Attention
01/25/2018Jay Baris and Nathan Greene, partners in the Investment Funds group, authored an article entitled “Cryptocurrencies: A Big Week for U.S. Regulatory Attention,” summarizing a seemingly sudden burst of regulatory actions taken by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission and a state regulator over the span of just a few days in January.
Read MoreCATEGORIES: CFTC, Cryptocurrencies/Virtual Currencies, Enforcement, Federal Regulation, SEC, State Regulation -
CFTC Discusses Approach to Virtual Currency Futures Markets
01/04/2018The Commodity Futures Trading Commission has released a backgrounder on the federal oversight of virtual currencies and its approach to regulating the virtual currency derivatives markets. Because virtual currencies have been deemed a commodity, certain derivative and other transactions in virtual currencies may be subject to CFTC oversight under the Commodity Exchange Act.
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