Exploring the legal and regulatory issues affecting the worldwide asset management community.
By: Jim Bulling and Ben Kneebush
As we have now said goodbye to FY25, we look back on some of the more significant regulatory developments that fund managers can’t afford to ignore.
Read MoreBy: Keri E. Riemer and Richard F. Kerr
As part of its effort to provide greater clarity on the application of federal securities laws to crypto assets, on 1 July 2025, the SEC’s Division of Corporation Finance (Division) released a statement (Statement) addressing its views about the application of certain disclosure requirements to crypto asset exchange-traded products (ETPs).
Read MoreBy: Jim Bulling, Alex Parker, and Madison Jeffreys
In preparation for the changes to the Anti-Money Laundering and Counter-Terrorism Financing Act 2006 (AML Act) which are due to commence on 1 July 2026, “tranche 2” entities including lawyers, accountants and real estate agents will need to make some significant changes to their business processes to ensure they comply with the new requirements.
Read MoreBy: Gayle Bowen and Hazel Doyle
ESMA finally published its long-awaited technical advice for the review of the EAD, which proposes changes to the existing UCITS framework (the Report).
Read MoreBy: Sarah V. Riddell and Vivian K. Bridges
On the heels of the House Financial Services Committee’s introduction of the CLARITY Act, Republican senators who serve on the Senate Banking Committee introduced their “Crypto Market Structure Principles” (the Principles) to establish a “baseline” for negotiating the Senate’s version of its market structure bill. Shortly after releasing the Principles, the Digital Assets Subcommittee of the Senate Banking Committee held a hearing on market structure.
Read MoreBy: Lance C. Dial, Keri E. Riemer, and Lael R. Franco
Spring is a time of renewal, and the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC)–under its new chairman, Paul Atkins–has shown that. On 12 June 2025, the SEC withdrew 14 proposed rules impacting funds and asset managers, including several that had been vigorously opposed by the industry. A complete list is below, but highlights include proposed rules relating to safeguarding (custody), predictive data analytics (AI), ESG-related disclosures, outsourcing and cybersecurity.
Read MoreBy: Pablo J. Man and Ruth E. Delaney
With less than a day to go before the 12 June 2025 compliance date for the SEC and CFTC’s jointly adopted amendments to Form PF, the SEC, together with the CFTC, voted today to further extend the compliance date for the amended form to 1 October 2025.
Read MoreBy: Kane Barnett and Isaac Gilmore
The Full Federal Court (the Court) has ruled in favour of the Australian Securities and Investments Commissions’ (ASIC) appeal as to whether BPS Financial Pty Ltd (BPS) could rely on the ‘authorised representative’ exemption in relation to issuing their ‘Qoin Wallet’ product (see our previous post for background). The authorised representative exemption is commonly relied upon and allows a person or entity to provide a financial service under the Corporations Act on behalf of the holder of an Australian financial services licence (AFS licence) without having to hold an AFS licence itself.
Read MoreBy: Richard F. Kerr, Keri E. Riemer, and Caroline N. Roethlisberger
On 29 May 2025, the SEC’s Division of Corporation Finance (the Division) issued a guidance statement (Statement) related to certain protocol staking activities. The Statement addresses the impact of federal securities laws on staking of crypto assets on networks that use proof-of-stake (PoS) as a consensus mechanism (PoS Networks). Such activity is referred to as “Protocol Staking” and such assets, “Covered Crypto Assets.”
Specifically, the Division stated that (i) staking Covered Crypto Assets on a PoS Network; (ii) the activities undertaken by third parties involved in the Protocol Staking process (including third-party node operators, validators, custodians, delegates and nominators); and (iii) providing certain ancillary services related to Protocol Staking in the manner described in the Statement do not involve the offer and sale of securities within the meaning of Section 2(a)(1) of the Securities Act of 1933 (the Securities Act) or Section 3(a)(10) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 and, therefore, do not need to register under the Securities Act, or fall within an exemption from registration.
The Statement provides guidance solely with respect to Protocol Staking activities undertaken in connection with self (or solo) staking, self-custodial staking directly with a third party and through custodial arrangements. The Statement does not cover instances where a custodian selects whether, when, or how much of an owner’s crypto assets to stake.
With respect to ancillary services, the Statement provides that service providers—including custodians—may engage in activities that are ministerial or administrative in nature, including providing slashing coverage, early unbonding, alternate rewards payment schedule and amounts, and the aggregation of crypto assets.
The Statement follows recent guidance from the Division providing greater clarity on the application of the federal securities laws to digital assets, including an FAQ that addresses broker-dealer custody of digital assets.
By: Robert L. Sichel, Ruth E. Delaney, William P. Wade, and Lael R. Franco
The Department of Labor will engage in new rulemaking to replace Biden era regulations labeled “Prudence and Loyalty in Selecting Plan Investments and Exercising Shareholder Rights” that allowed plan fiduciaries may consider ESG factors when choosing ERISA retirement plan investments. The Department announced its intention in a filing to the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals in connection with a legal challenge to the regulations.
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