John J. Carney

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Jury Finds Former NFT Marketplace Manager Guilty of ‘Insider Trading’ Wire Fraud Scheme and Money Laundering

Photo of John J. CarneyPhoto of Teresa Goody GuillénPhoto of Veronica ReynoldsPhoto of Michelle TanneyPhoto of Joanna F. WasickBy John J. Carney, Teresa Goody Guillén, Veronica Reynolds, Michelle Tanney and Joanna F. Wasick on Posted in Alert
On May 3, 2023, a jury found Nathaniel Chastain, a former manager of OpenSea (a major NFT marketplace), guilty of wire fraud and money laundering in connection with his attempts to conceal his use of confidential business information for his own personal gain. The verdict stems from an indictment brought last year by the U.S. … Continue Reading

Disclosing Cryptocurrency Risks: SEC Comment Letter Puts Companies On Notice

Photo of John J. CarneyPhoto of Teresa Goody GuillénPhoto of Robert A. MusialaPhoto of Joanna F. WasickPhoto of Lauren BassBy Jonathan R. Barr, John J. Carney, Jimmy Fokas, Teresa Goody Guillén, Robert A. Musiala, Joanna F. Wasick and Lauren Bass on Posted in Cryptocurrency
The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) Division of Corporation Finance (CorpFin) recently issued guidance (Guidance), including a “Dear Issuer” Sample Letter (Sample Letter) to assist companies in meeting their statutory disclosure obligations in light of the recent crypto downturn. Read the full Alert.… Continue Reading

SEC and DOJ Bring Parallel Crypto Insider Trading Cases; SEC Alleges Nine Tokens Are Securities

Photo of John J. CarneyPhoto of Kevin EdgarPhoto of Jonathan A. FormanPhoto of Adam GalePhoto of Teresa Goody GuillénPhoto of Robert A. MusialaPhoto of Veronica ReynoldsPhoto of Michelle TanneyBy John J. Carney, Kevin Edgar, Jonathan A. Forman, Adam Gale, Teresa Goody Guillén, Robert A. Musiala, Veronica Reynolds and Michelle Tanney on Posted in Blockchain
Significant parallel actions commenced this week by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and the Department of Justice (DOJ) bring crypto fraud enforcement into the spotlight, with the SEC alleging that multiple tokens listed on Coinbase are securities. In its first insider trading case of “crypto asset securities,” the SEC charged a former Coinbase product manager, his … Continue Reading

DOJ Calls on International Partners to Improve Investigative Efficiency in Response to President Biden’s Executive Order on Risks Involving Digital Assets

Photo of Carlos OrtizPhoto of Robert A. MusialaPhoto of Teresa Goody GuillénPhoto of John J. CarneyPhoto of Christina GotsisPhoto of Veronica ReynoldsPhoto of Kayley SullivanBy Carlos Ortiz, Robert A. Musiala, Teresa Goody Guillén, John J. Carney, Christina Gotsis, Veronica Reynolds and Kayley Sullivan on Posted in Blockchain
In June 2022, the Department of Justice (DOJ) issued a report (Report) recommending increased cooperation among international law enforcement agencies to combat threats and crime related to the use and proliferation of digital assets and to address obstacles unique to the asset class. Specific actions recommended by the Report include expanding U.S. relationships with international … Continue Reading

SEC Signals Ramp-Up in Crypto Enforcement by Nearly Doubling Its Crypto Assets Cyber Unit Staff

Photo of Joanna F. WasickPhoto of Teresa Goody GuillénPhoto of Veronica ReynoldsPhoto of Adam GalePhoto of John J. CarneyPhoto of Jonathan A. FormanPhoto of Robert A. MusialaBy Joanna F. Wasick, Teresa Goody Guillén, Veronica Reynolds, Adam Gale, John J. Carney, Jonathan A. Forman and Robert A. Musiala on Posted in Blockchain
On May 3, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) announced the expansion of its Crypto Assets and Cyber Unit (the Unit f/k/a the Cyber Unit) to 50 staff members, nearly double the Unit’s former size, including supervisors, investigative staff attorneys, trial counsel and fraud analysts. The Unit is a group within the Division of … Continue Reading

DOJ Targets Cryptocurrency Fraud

Photo of John J. CarneyPhoto of Robert A. MusialaPhoto of Michelle TanneyPhoto of Kayley SullivanBy John J. Carney, Robert A. Musiala, Michelle Tanney and Kayley Sullivan on Posted in Blockchain, Cryptocurrency, Enforcement, Securities & Exchange Commission
Authorship credit: John J. Carney, Robert A. Musiala Jr., Michelle N. Tanney, and Kayley B. Sullivan On October 6, 2021, the U.S. Department of Justice (“DOJ”) announced the creation of a National Cryptocurrency Enforcement Team (“NCET” or “Team”) to tackle investigations and prosecutions of criminal misuses of cryptocurrency, including crimes committed by virtual currency exchanges, … Continue Reading

SEC Doubles Down on Crypto Enforcement

Photo of John J. CarneyPhoto of Teresa Goody GuillénPhoto of Adam GalePhoto of Jonathan A. FormanPhoto of Michelle TanneyBy John J. Carney, Teresa Goody Guillén, Adam Gale, Jonathan A. Forman and Michelle Tanney on Posted in Bitcoin, Blockchain, Cryptocurrency, Enforcement, Securities & Exchange Commission, White Collar
In a speech before the Aspen Security Forum on August 3, 2021, Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC” or “Commission”) Chair Gary Gensler urged lawmakers to provide him with the power to police cryptocurrency trading, referring to it as the “Wild West.”[1] While he noted that the views he was sharing were his own and not … Continue Reading

DOJ and IRS May Soon Begin Enforcement Actions Against Virtual Currency Tax Fraudsters

Photo of John J. CarneyPhoto of Andrew SerraoPhoto of Robert A. MusialaPhoto of Jeffrey H. ParavanoPhoto of Nicholas C. MowbrayBy John J. Carney, Andrew Serrao, Robert A. Musiala, Jeffrey H. Paravano and Nicholas C. Mowbray on Posted in Tax
In the past several years, the use and prevalence of virtual currency have increased exponentially. The proliferation of digital assets has changed the way goods and services are exchanged and has allowed for faster and cheaper transactions. But with this new technology comes the increased risk of fraudulent activity – especially tax fraud. Recently, the … Continue Reading
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