Expert Analysis

• How Focus On Congruency Affects Corporate Political Activity

  

  Congruency — whether the contributions made by a company-sponsored political action committee align with the corporation's public statements on issues of social responsibility — is undoubtedly the next frontier in the battle over corporate political activity, despite the limited success of shareholder proposals on the issue, says Carol Laham at Wiley.

• Examining PayPal's Venture Into The Stablecoin Market

  

  PayPal’s recent release of a stablecoin pegged to the U.S. dollar may represent a groundbreaking innovation or could fail as others have before it, and policymakers in the U.K. and the EU will be watching the impact of this new crypto token with a keen eye, say Ben Lee and Dion Seymour at Andersen.

• Takeaways For Banks From Feds' Basel-Adoption Proposal

  

  Attorneys at Debevoise highlight the most notable aspects of both the long-awaited proposal setting forth the banking agencies' approach to implementing the Basel Committee on Banking Supervision's 2017 revisions to the Basel III framework and a proposal related to the capital surcharge for the largest U.S. global systemically important bank holding companies.

• Pitfalls Of The SAFE Tool For Startups

  

  Although a simple agreement for future equity is a cornerstone of startup finances and a quick way for them to paper investments, even sophisticated entrepreneurs and venture capitals sometimes fail to realize the mathematical risks contained in their SAFE, say attorneys at Lowenstein Sandler.

• To Hire And Keep Top Talent, Think Beyond Compensation

  

  Firms seeking to appeal to sophisticated clients and top-level partners should promote mentorship, ensure that attorneys from diverse backgrounds feel valued, and clarify policies about at-home work, says Patrick Moya at Quaero Group.

• SEC, FINRA Actions Signal Increased AML Enforcement

  

  The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission’s recent risk alerts and the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority’s regulatory notices, as well as recent enforcement actions, show that broker-dealers and other financial institutions should be mindful that financial regulators beyond the traditional banking regulators are closely scrutinizing AML-related issues, say attorneys at Arnold & Porter.

• 2nd Circ. Goldman Ruling May Hinder Securities Classes

  

  The Second Circuit's recent Arkansas Teacher Retirement System v. Goldman Sachs decision, decertifying a class of investors and seemingly resolving a decadelong dispute, makes it substantially more difficult for plaintiffs to certify securities classes based on generic misstatements — a significant win for the defense bar, say attorneys at Willkie.

• Perspectives

  More States Should Join Effort To Close Legal Services Gap

  

  Colorado is the most recent state to allow other types of legal providers, not just attorneys, to offer specific services in certain circumstances — and more states should rethink the century-old assumptions that shape our current regulatory rules, say Natalie Anne Knowlton and Janet Drobinske at the University of Denver.

• Federal Bill Is A Big Milestone For Crypto Industry

  

  While regulators have tried providing some guidance to banks on mitigating cryptocurrency risks, the Financial Innovation and Technology for the 21st Century Act, if passed by Congress, could mean harmony among regulators for the first time since the digital asset market's formation, say Kendra Canape and Brennan Quigley at Gordon & Rees.

• Identifying Trends And Tips In Litigation Financing Disclosure

  

  Growing interest and controversy in litigation financing raise several salient concerns, but exploring recent compelled disclosure trends from courts around the country can help practitioners further their clients' interests, say Sean Callagy and Samuel Sokolsky at Arnold & Porter.

• Divergent NY Rulings Compound Crypto Regulation Questions

  

  Though the crypto industry had a brief victory when a New York federal court held that the crypto-asset at issue was not a security, another ruling from the same courthouse just two weeks later showed that the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission's enforcement efforts are far from over, say attorneys at Ballard Spahr.

• Key Drivers Behind Widespread Adoption Of NAV Financing

  

  While net asset value-based lending has existed for years, NAV lending has only started to move into the mainstream recently — likely due to difficult market conditions faced by sponsors including persistent inflation, high interest rates and a lack of exit opportunities, say Matthew Kerfoot and Jinyoung Joo at Proskauer.

• Opinion

  Congress Must Pass CFTC Whistleblower Funding Law

  

  Legislation introduced in the U.S. Senate to revamp the Commodity Futures Trading Commission whistleblower program's funding structure requires urgent attention so that the program can continue to be a remarkable success story, says Stephen Kohn at Kohn Kohn.

• Lenders Should Study New York's Biz Loan Disclosure Rules

  

  Loan providers will need to dive deep into the detailed rules governing New York state’s new commercial financing disclosure requirements in order to successfully understand and comply with the recently implemented law, say Barry Hester and Gretchen von Dwingelo at BCLP.

• Series

  The Pop Culture Docket: Judge Elrod On 'Jury Duty'

  

  Though the mockumentary series “Jury Duty” features purposely outrageous characters, it offers a solemn lesson about the simple but brilliant design of the right to trial by jury, with an unwitting protagonist who even John Adams may have welcomed as an impartial foreperson, says Fifth Circuit Judge Jennifer Elrod.