As the world marks the 11-year anniversary of the seminal
Satoshi Nakamoto whitepaper, which introduced the world to bitcoin,
the cryptocurrency industry remains a relatively nascent, highly
volatile, somewhat untrusted, and uncertain industry. Despite
– or to spite – the statements of certain regulatory
and law enforcement agencies, virtual currencies do not neatly fit
into existing regulatory structures. Depending on the specific
circumstances, cryptoassets may be regulated by any of a number of
federal agencies within the United States (not to mention the array
of state or foreign agencies that might stake a claim to
jurisdiction).
The process of applying a complex network of laws and rules
enforced by different agencies onto these new technologies,
products, and services has resulted in an opaque regulatory
environment. This, in turn, yields reluctance to provide investment
for much-needed research and development, along with genuine
uncertainty as to how to
