Financial Regulatory Developments Focus - 6 May 2014

The SEC and CFTC have issued coordinated regulatory relief measures that significantly advance crypto-based trading infrastructure in US markets, bypassing Congressional gridlock on the CLARITY Act. These orders establish new frameworks for tokenized securities venues and passive software providers, potentially reshaping how digital assets are traded and accessed in regulated markets.

Moore & Van Allen's Derivatives & Trading team provides comprehensive analysis of recent CFTC and SEC enforcement actions, proposed regulations on crypto assets...

The Health Resources and Services Administration has announced a revised 340B Rebate Model Pilot Program for drugs subject to Medicare's Maximum Fair Price, expanding eligibility to manufacturers with selected drugs for 2026 and 2027. The program introduces new data requirements, dispute resolution mechanisms, and stricter compliance monitoring while addressing stakeholder concerns about administrative burden and program integrity.

Medicare Advantage faces unprecedented regulatory scrutiny as federal agencies deploy aggressive audit strategies, Congress investigates alleged fraud schemes, and courts challenge CMS's authority over payment structures.

The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission has proposed Regulation Crypto Assets, introducing two new exemptions from registration requirements and a safe harbor provision for investment contracts involving crypto assets. How will these tailored frameworks—the Startup Exemption for offerings up to $5M and the Fundraising Exemption for larger capital raises—reshape the regulatory landscape for digital asset issuers while preserving investor protections?

The CFTC continues its regulatory evolution with significant developments in June 2026, including the rescission of its longstanding no-deny settlement policy, proposed amendments to whistleblower protections, and joint harmonization efforts with the SEC on data reporting and portfolio margining. The agency also advances its oversight of prediction markets while CME Group challenges the CFTC's characterization of cryptocurrency perpetual futures contracts.

The SEC has approved new NYSE and NYSE American listing rules establishing a $0.25 minimum trading price, effective July 1, 2027. A single closing price below this threshold triggers immediate trading suspension and delisting proceedings with no cure period. Companies trading at low share prices must act now during the transition period to implement reverse stock splits and establish monitoring procedures before this hard floor takes effect.

On May 29, 2026, the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) took a series of coordinated actions to establish a domestic regulatory framework for perpetual contracts on digital commodities.

This comprehensive regulatory update examines recent CFTC enforcement actions, new margin rules for uncleared swaps, and the evolving landscape of perpetual futures contracts and prediction markets. The analysis covers critical developments including commodity pool fraud cases, exchange disciplinary actions, and emerging compliance challenges as 24/7 trading expands across traditional and digital asset markets.

Lowenstein Sandler achieves groundbreaking SEC no-action relief enabling zero cash balance brokerage accounts, while global regulators advance digital asset infrastructure and issue new guidance on AI supervision and prediction market contracts. How are these developments reshaping the intersection of traditional finance, emerging technology, and regulatory oversight?

Japan has enacted sweeping amendments to its Act on the Protection of Personal Information, introducing an administrative surcharge regime with monetary penalties for data protection violations, new protections for children under 16 and biometric data, and expanded exceptions for data utilization in statistical analysis and AI development. The reforms, which take effect in stages through 2028, fundamentally reshape Japan's privacy enforcement landscape by granting the Personal Information Protection Commiss

The European Commission's Industrial Accelerator Act proposes to reshape battery supply chains by conditioning access to EU public procurement and support schemes on strict origin requirements. As China controls over 80% of global battery manufacturing capacity, the legislation introduces escalating component-count thresholds that could fundamentally alter market access, financing structures, and supplier eligibility across the battery value chain.

On August 10, a group of 19 Republican Senators joined their Democratic colleagues in approving a bill that, if passed by the House of Representatives and signed...

The European Union's new Regulation on packaging and packaging waste has fundamentally transformed compliance requirements for companies placing packaged goods on the EU market, replacing decades-old directive-based frameworks with directly applicable product-law rules. While promising regulatory harmonization across member states, the reality presents a complex dual-compliance landscape where businesses must navigate both EU-wide packaging standards and diverging national implementation approaches.

The European Commission's proposal to revise the EU Emission Trading System introduces a significant new element: the potential purchase of up to 260 million international carbon credits. This development, alongside parallel provisions in the Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism, signals a cautious but meaningful shift in how the EU approaches international carbon credits. Understanding these distinct treatment mechanisms has critical implications for ETS-covered operators, EU importers, and international tra

Spain's draft Royal Decree introduces stringent energy sustainability, environmental, resilience and digital sovereignty requirements for data centers, including renewable additionality, hourly correlation, and efficiency standards. The regulation applies to all access and connection permits obtained after entry into force, with specific compliance deadlines for projects in progress and those with granted permits not yet connected to the grid.

California has enacted a comprehensive package of four bills that fundamentally reshape online safety protections for minors, targeting addictive design features, data privacy practices, age verification systems, and platform liability. These new laws establish strict requirements for social media companies, including mandatory stripped-down interfaces for users under 16, enhanced privacy defaults, and potential damages up to $1 million for negligent harm to children. The legislation represents one of the m

The EU Market Integration and Supervision Package represents a comprehensive overhaul of European financial services regulation, amending 19 separate pieces of legislation including MiFIR, MiFID II, EMIR, and MiCAR. Born from the 2024 Draghi Report and 2025 Competitiveness Compass, this sweeping reform seeks to address regulatory fragmentation across Member States while fostering deeper capital market integration and broader retail investor participation.

The Hong Kong Securities and Futures Commission (SFC) has issued a circular that sets forth comprehensive guidelines and expectations for licensed corporations (LCs) regarding the responsible use...

The European Central Bank has issued an urgent directive to major financial institutions requiring comprehensive action plans to counter rapidly evolving cybersecurity threats powered by frontier artificial intelligence models. With an October 2026 deadline looming, banks must demonstrate concrete measures across vulnerability management, monitoring capabilities, and third-party risk controls as AI-enabled attacks compress the timeline between threat discovery and exploitation. This supervisory escalation s