Every movement needs a leader, and it seems the cannabis industry has found one in U.S. Representative Ed Perlmutter of Colorado. He is the sponsor of the Secure and Fair Enforcement Banking Act of 2021 (“SAFE”), a legislative bill that would provide cannabis businesses with improved access to mainstream banking services. (Kyle Jaeger, Marijuana Moment). In April, the House approved SAFE by a vote of 321 to 101. (The Office of Representative Ed Perlmutter). SAFE now sits in purgatory while the U.S. Senate debates its merits. (Christopher Butler, Boston.com). This post examines the impact SAFE would have on the cannabis industry in the context of the industry’s current standing in the realm of public opinion and under current legal structures. . .
Read More“DeFi” is short-form for decentralized finance, a method of executing financial transactions without the middlemen—brokerages, exchanges, banks, and other intermediaries. (Devine, US News). An understanding of yield farming cannot be achieved without first understanding the term DeFi. In the purest sense of the term, DeFi “must have no centralized control but run autonomously on a blockchain through the use of smart contracts.” Id. These smart contracts are “bits of code that perform actions once certain conditions have been met,” self-executing when specific outcomes occur. Id. Generally, DeFi has come to be known as the term for “any application or business that uses blockchain technology or cryptocurrency to create alternative financial products.” Id. One practice catching the attention of the SEC is yield farming, a method of lending crypto currency to which the SEC believes federal securities regulations apply. (Kharif, Bloomberg Law). . .
Read MoreAlthough digital currencies have been the hottest topic in the blockchain area for several years, investors are increasingly turning their attention to a digital asset that is valuable for the item it represents rather than for its potential use as a currency. Non-fungible tokens (“NFTs”) are digital versions of artwork, music, trading cards, autographs, and other collectibles that are secured on a blockchain and purchased using a recognized cryptocurrency, such as Ethereum or Bitcoin. (Robyn Conti and John Schmidt, Forbes Advisor). However, unlike cryptocurrencies, every NFT has its own digital signature, which makes them impossible to copy and thus significantly enhances their value. Id. . .
Read MoreDue to the growing obsession with decentralized finance (“DeFi”) and tighter governmental regulation over cryptocurrency products, Decentralized Autonomous Organizations (“DAOs”) have emerged as a novel attraction. (Joon Kim & Daniel Forester, Bloomberg Law; Cathy Hackl, Forbes). DAOs are run autonomously and give individuals a safe and effective way to work with like-minded people around the world. (Cathy Hackl, Forbes; Ethereum). A DAO’s control and governance functions are distributed horizontally across its members, which eliminates the need for a central authority and thus makes them attractive to DeFi enthusiasts. . .
Read MoreWhile publicly-traded companies are coming under greater scrutiny and facing additional requirements to create diversity on their boards of directors (“boards”), private companies continue to skate under the radar on this front. One reason for this is that private companies do not face the same disclosure requirements that public companies do. (Ann Shepherd & Gené Teare, Crunchbase News). Another is that there is little information about the make-up of the boards of most private companies. However, in 2019 three organizations undertook a study of gender diversity of private company boards and built on that study in 2020 looking at both gender and racial and ethnic diversity. . .
Read MoreThe Federal Trade Commission (“FTC”) does not have the capacity to review every eligible merger and acquisition (i.e. with a value of $92 million or more) in thirty days or less because of a recent surge that observers have attributed to the pandemic. (Siri Bulusu, Bloomberg Law). The announcement came as a surprise to companies and their counsel who have come to rely on this convenience for more than forty years. (John Stern, National Law Review). . .
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