In the following guest post, Sarah Abrams, Head of Claims Baleen Specialty, a division of Bowhead Specialty, takes a look at the D&O risks that can arise from crypto-adjacent firms’ use “liquidity pools,” in view of the D&O claims involving the bankrupt digital token firm, SafeMoon. My thanks to Sarah for allowing me to publish her article as a guest post on this site. Here is Sarah’s article.Continue Reading Guest Post: Liquidity Pool Fraud and D&O Risk
One of the more interesting emerging phenomena involving cryptocurrencies has been the recent rise of crypto treasury companies – that is, companies whose primary purpose is acquiring and holding cryptocurrencies as part of their corporate treasury. There arguably are a host of concerns with these kinds of firms. Among other things, and as discussed in the guest post below from Sarah Abrams, there may be issues for these kinds of firms in connection with FDIC deposit insurance disclosure requirements. Sarah is Head of Claims Baleen Specialty, a division of Bowhead Specialty. I would like to thank Sarah for allowing me to publish her article as a guest post on this site.Continue Reading Guest Post: FDIC Advertising Rule and Crypto Treasuries
A recent series of U.S. Department of Justice actions highlights the agency’s focus on combatting so-called “pig-butchering” — a type of online financial scam where fraudsters build a long-term relationship with a victim to gain trust and then convince the victim to invest in fake cryptocurrency or trading schemes. In the following guest post, Sarah Abrams, Head of Claims Baleen Specialty, a division of Bowhead Specialty, takes a look at how developments in the crypto world coinciding with the DOJ’s crackdown may be creating increased D&O risk arising from pig-butchering schemes. I would like to thank Sarah for allowing me to publish her article on this site. Here is Sarah’s article.Continue Reading Guest Post: Another Emerging Cryptocurrency Risk for D&O Underwriters?
Among the many concerns arising from the increasing prevalence of cryptocurrency are the problems and risks associated with the fact that the liquidity and value of cryptocurrencies fluctuate over time. To illustrate the kinds of liability risks this fluctuation can lead to, Sarah Abrams, Head of Claims Baleen Specialty, a division of Bowhead Specialty, reviews a recent set of circumstances in which Stoli Group USA, LLC sought to settle a secured debt liability by payment of another kind of alternative asset with fluctuating valuation – in this case, 35,000 barrels of unfinished bourbon. Sarah considers the potential implications from the Stoli case for companies with crypto treasury assets. I would like to thank Sarah for allowing me to publish her article as a guest post on this site. I welcome guest post submissions from responsible authors on topics of interest to this site’s readers. Please contact me directly if you would like to submit a guest post. Here is Sarah’s article.Continue Reading Guest Post: Shot of Crypto
The rise of crypto currencies in recent years may be one of the more noteworthy financial developments of our time. Now, A growing number of companies are raising funds in the capital markets for the express purpose of accumulating cryptocurrencies as treasury assets. In the following guest post, Suresh Ellawala, Client Relationship Director at Price Forbes, takes a look at the recent rise of crypto treasury companies and considers the implications, including the risks potentially involved for directors and their insurers. I would like to thank Suresh for allowing me to publish his article as a guest post on this site. I welcome guest post submissions from responsible authors on topics of interest to this site’s readers. Please contact me directly if you would like to submit a guest post. Here is Suresh’s article. Continue Reading Guest Post: Crypto Treasury Companies – Been There, Done That?
There is no doubt that in many ways cryptocurrency is going mainstream. It is showing up in a surprisingly wide variety of places for a wide variety of reasons. In the following guest post, Sarah Abrams, Head of Claims Baleen Specialty, a division of Bowhead Specialty, takes a look at recent suggestions that merchants could substitute stablecoin rewards as a form of customer loyalty payment and considers the potential D&O insurance underwriting implications. I would like to thank Sarah for allowing me to publish her article as a guest post on this site. I welcome guest post submissions from responsible authors on topics of interest to this site’s readers. Please contact me directly if you would like to submit a guest post. Here is Sarah’s article.Continue Reading Guest Post: Rewarding Stablecoins
There is no doubt that under the current Trump administration, cryptocurrency is enjoying a more hospitable environment. The environment not only affords crypto firms increased business opportunities, such as, for example, with respect to exchange-traded digital assets, but the environment may lend itself to opportunities for D&O insurers as well. In the following guest post, Sarah Abrams, Head of Claims Baleen Specialty, a division of Bowhead Specialty, reviews some of the details about the current crypto environment, as well as the opportunities and risks that the environment may represent for D&O insurers. I would like to thank Sarah for allowing me to publish her article as a guest post on this site. I welcome guest post submissions from responsible authors on topics of interest to this site’s readers. Please contact me directly if you would like to submit a guest post. Here is Sarah’s article.Continue Reading Guest Post: Crypto-Verse D&O Opportunity
We live in a time when cryptocurrency has friends in high places. In the following guest post, Sarah Abrams, Head of Claims Baleen Specialty, a division of Bowhead Specialty, considers the current environment for cryptocurrencies and examines the potential D&O liability and insurance implications. I would like to thank Sarah for allowing me to publish her article as a guest post on this site. I welcome guest post submissions from responsible authors on topics of interest to this site’s readers. Please contact me directly if you would like to submit a guest post. Here is Sarah’s article.Continue Reading Guest Post: Is There Stability in Stablecoin? Asking for a D&O Underwriter
It was no secret that the crypto enforcement approach was going to change under the Trump administration. Indeed, one of Trump’s first acts upon returning to the White House in January was to sign an executive order calculated to try to make the U.S. the “crypto capital of the world.” The SEC has likewise made it clear that under the new administration the agency will also be taking a new approach to crypto. The acting SEC leadership has already made a number of crypto-friendly moves – among other things, the new leadership disbanded the agency’s Crypto Enforcement Task Force. The SEC has also dismissed pending cases against Binance (here) and Coinbase (here). As discussed below, the agency recently has taken even further crypto friendly actions – all of which has at least one observer to ask whether the SEC crypto pull back has gone too far?Continue Reading Sounding the Alarm on the SEC’s New Crypto Approach
It was already understood that the SEC under the new Trump administration would be taking a different approach to cryptocurrency enforcement, but the announcement on January 21, 2025 that the agency under Acting Chair Mark Uyeda was forming a cryptocurrency task force “dedicated to developing a comprehensive and clear regulatory framework for crypto assets” certainly underscores the fact that the SEC will treating crypto differently than was the case during the Biden administration. But while we look ahead to what may be in store for crypto under the new administration, it is also worth looking back at what the agency’s approach to crypto enforcement has been up to this point. A new Cornerstone Research report entitled “SEC Cryptocurrency Enforcement: 2024 Update” (here) provides a comprehensive overview of the agency’s crypto enforcement so far.Continue Reading Cornerstone Research: Crypto Enforcement at the SEC