Does a decades-old securities law apply to an initial coin offering (ICO)? In a case that represents the first time securities laws have been applied to cryptocurrencies, a district judge says it may. On September 11, 2018, in a district courthouse in Brooklyn, New York, Judge Raymond Dearie ruled that two ICOs were securities, based on established laws that govern the financial instruments. His decision does not imply that all ICOs are securities, but that simply calling a token a “currency” does not preclude it from being classified as a…
Federal Judge Applies Long-Established Securities Law to ICOs
