In January 2018, the justice minister of South Korea announced that the country would consider banning cryptocurrency exchanges amid concerns regarding rampant speculation driving the prices of several virtual currencies, including bitcoin, sky high.1 The news led to an extreme worldwide drop in the price of bitcoin, as investors tried to gauge the uncertainty of…
Tag: Regulation
Imposing Market Maker Obligations on Liquidity Providers
The historical practice of stock exchanges providing specialists started on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange in 1872.1 Up through the twentieth century, these specialists operated as market makers, ensuring market participants had timely and fair access to trades.2 The specialists had an affirmative obligation, in good times and in bad, to provide liquidity…
Fintech Companies and Regulatory Problems
Historically, the financial services industry has been protected from significant market disruption based on new technological innovation.1 Incumbent companies in the industry have a number of economic moats to rely on: “ubiquitous distribution through branches”; “unique expertise such as credit underwriting”; and “the special status of being regulated institutions that supply credit . . ….
Texas Court Makes Quick Work of Obama-era Overtime Rule.
Since December 2016, employers with salaried workers all over the country have been riding a regulatory seesaw. That’s when a revised Obama administration Department of Labor regulation was supposed to take effect. The new rule raised the minimum salary required for an exemption from mandatory overtime from $23,660 annually to $47,476 per year for salaried…
This post is a follow-up my previous posts covering the Yahoo-Verizon merger.1 The Threat of Cyber-crime Cyber-crime is one of the greatest threats that businesses face,2 and it’s a problem that is only becoming more prevalent. The New York Office of the Attorney General saw a 60% increase in data breach reports in 2016 compared…
The Potential Repeal of the Johnson Amendment
Part I: The Johnson Amendment’s History and Controversy The “Johnson Amendment” is the nickname for a provision in the U.S. Tax Code that places limitations on the activities of organizations seeking tax exemption. 26 U.S.C. § 501(a) provides that some organizations shall be exempt from taxation.1 Section 501(c)(3) provides the general requirements that, to be…
NYC Short-Term Rental Regulations Cause Problems for Airbnb, but May Benefit Renters
On October 21, 2016, New York governor Andrew Cuomo signed into law new restrictions on short-term apartment rentals.1 The restrictions have dire implications for companies like Airbnb and other home-sharing websites. It is now illegal in New York City to advertise your entire home or apartment on Airbnb for less than 30 days.2 The rule…
Understanding the SEC’s Recent Crackdown on Private Equity
In the last few years, the private equity market has continued to balloon. In 2015, there was $2.4 trillion in private equity assets under management and the market as a whole saw an aggregate value of total buyout deals hit $411 billion.1 In comparison, there was $716 billion of total assets under management in the…
The Impact of Vermont’s Mandatory GMO Labeling Law
Despite the scientific consensus that products containing or derived from GMOs (genetically modified organisms) are safe for human consumption,1 there have been numerous attempts to pass mandatory labeling laws in the United States. Starting July 1, 2016, a Vermont law enacted in May 2014 will require the mandatory labeling of food products containing GMOs.2 Congress…
Pharmaceutical Pricing: The Free Market and Government Regulation on Drug Companies
Since Martin Shkreli announced that he would lower the price of Daraprim by an unnamed amount at some point in the future; as of this writing, he has not done so.1 Critics of Shkreli claim that the announcement to lower the price was merely a tactic to placate critics.2 Shkreli has responded by stating that such…