ICOs in ASIC’s firing-line

Yesterday ASIC issued a media release in respect of their recent activity against ICOs. ASIC’s actions are in line with its Corporate Plan, where it noted that monitoring and regulating ICOs and cryptocurrency were going to be an area of focus.

Consistent with what we have observed in the market, many issuers of ICOs are not aware how the law in general, and in particular, the managed investment scheme regime may apply to ICOs and the regulatory burdens they import. While the Corporations Act does not specifically contemplate ICOs (or any type of cryptocurrency) and the law may at times seem like fitting a digital square peg into an analogue round hole, the existing law until updated, still applies.

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John Bassilios

John Bassilios

Partner & Fintech and Blockchain Lead

John has broad experience in financial services, funds management, blockchain, crypto, web3 and corporate law.

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