With summer in full swing in the Northern Hemisphere, the title of Cole Porter’s song (wonderfully rendered by Ella Fitzgerald here) also describes the recent developments in digital and crypto-assets. In the latest Digital Assets Download, Mayer Brown’s multidisciplinary team breaks down the latest (and hottest) topics in this space.
For the Uninitiated: What Is the Digital Assets Download? A curated mix of insights and headlines that provide a Layer 3 Legal Perspective™ on the digital assets multiverse—created by Mayer Brown’s global Digital Assets, Blockchain & Cryptocurrency group.
Check out all of our previous editions of the Digital Assets Download here.
The Lead Block
News Node
A curated selection of headlines and news from around this multiverse—including deals, developments and other disruptions in DeFi.
Crypto Hacks Soar as North Korea Targets DeFi.
Crypto Rules Crackdown Looms for $150 Billion Stablecoin Market.
US Senator Toomey Questions FDIC Over “Choke Point”-esque Crackdown on Banks and Crypto.
US Regulator “Improperly” Pushing Banks to Avoid Serving Crypto Companies, Lawmaker Says.
US Fed Opens Pathway for Crypto Banks to Tap Central Banking System.
FTC Probes BitMart Exchange Breach, Marking Agency’s First Crypto Case.
UN Trade Body Calls for Halting Cryptocurrency Rise in Developing Countries.
InvestHK Opens CBDC Fast Track Programme.
Merchants Getting Ready for Crypto [nearly 75% of retailers plan to accept either cryptocurrency or stablecoin payments within the next two years according to a June survey conducted by Deloitte].
A Senate Proposal Would Give CFTC Responsibility for Policing Bitcoin, Ethereum.
Crypto Community Split on Treasury’s Tornado Cash Sanctions.
Colombia Explores Creating a CBDC to Combat Tax Evasion.
Bitcoin Miners Are in Distress.
Select Events
Selected events for deeper dives into different parts of the digital assets and DeFi world.
Alternative Finance Summit 2022: Fintech, Blockchain and Crowdfunding
Join Mayer Brown partner Anna Pinedo during the “Turbulent Year in the Markets After Returning From Covid-19: Securities Offering and Private Placement Developments” panel on September 21, 2022, at 9:10 am EDT. This panel will discuss the residual impact of COVID-19 on offerings and placements, SEC guidances on SPACs, and other relevant topics. For more information, including how to register, please visit the event website.
Learn the Lingo
Wallet:
Cold Wallet: A cold wallet is a cryptocurrency wallet that is not connected to the internet. These include paper wallets (where the private keys used to manage the wallet are written on a physical piece of paper and accessible only to the holder of the paper), offline desktop wallets (where the private keys are stored on a computer that is never connected to the internet) and modern hardware wallets (where the private keys are stored on a small USB stick that is protected by a PIN that must be keyed physically). Cold wallets are considered more secure than hot wallets because stealing from a cold wallet would require physical possession of the wallet (together with any PINs or passwords needed to access the wallet).
Hot Wallet: A hot wallet is a cryptocurrency wallet that is connected to the internet. These include web-based wallets, mobile wallets, and online desktop wallets. Hot wallets are easy to use because the private keys necessary to manage the wallet are stored together with the wallet online. However, they are the most vulnerable to attack for the same reason. Savvy users are unlikely to hold significant amounts of cryptocurrency in hot wallets.
