The US Securities and Exchange Commission is sending out requests for information to NFT investors, exchanges, and firms. The move is yet another signal that the nation’s finance watchdog doesn’t quite know what to do with the $2.5 trillion crypto market. What we now know, however, is that chairperson Gary Gensler’s scope is aimed at the industry. What does that mean, exactly? Let’s unpack the situation and look at it through a pair of legal lenses. What Is the SEC? The stock market crash of 1929 gave way to the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). An independent federal government age ..read more

What Is NFT Gaming? NFT gaming — aka game-fi and play-to-earn — is the next big thing in digital entertainment. Usually, platforms award in-game tokens and trade or sell them on exchanges for cryptocurrencies or cash. Developers build play-to-earn games on various blockchain protocols, the most popular being ERC-20 and ERC-721 on the Ethereum platform. How Do Game Companies Make Money From NFT Gaming? Some play-to-earn NFT games charge an upfront fee. Others take a small commission off every in-game trade. Theoretically, smart contracts can also demarcate royalty payments and commissions back ..read more

We’re at another technological crossroad. Like the Internet, blockchain technology is a game-changer with tremendous market-making potential. Currently, we’re in the intermediate stage. Big players are developing blockchain teams, and some are innovating on an exciting scale. But even we, as blockchain enthusiasts, admit that some ideas bubbling their way to the top are questionable. However, one of the more interesting and indicative threads to watch at this point, legally speaking, is how luxury brands are responding to the new technology — specifically as it relates to intellectual property ..read more

It was inevitable. NFTs have merged with the esports space. So what do businesses need to know about the legalities? Let’s take a look. What Are NFTs? If you’ve landed on this page, you probably understand the basics of NFTs. But just in case, NFTs are: Non-fungible tokens that represent unique physical or digital assets Created with blockchain technology Not typically stored on a blockchain, but they include metadata referencing a network and other elements for provenance purposes Click here for an in-depth exploration of NFTs. NFTs can be used to represent digital or physical assets, inclu ..read more

The Blockchain Game Alliance released a membership survey, revealing trends in the NFT gaming market. Ultimately, developers and other industry players are most concerned with regulatory uncertainty surrounding blockchain and NFTs. However, most brands are excited by the game-fi model and see it as a huge part of the industry’s future. NFT Gaming Industry Challenges There’s a lot of industry excitement around the play-to-earn gaming models facilitated by NFTs. However, it’s a nascent market, and pioneers in the space are encountering a few hurdles. Nothing is insurmountable, but anyone thinkin ..read more

If you landed here, you’re probably wondering about NFT tax rules. Must you report NFT gains and losses to the Internal Revenue Service? Can the IRS charge you with a felony if you don’t? We’ve got answers. What Is an NFT? Before we dive into some NFT tax law questions, let’s quickly review the current NFT landscape. NFT Basics NFT stands for non-fungible token. Each one is unique and carries a robust set of programmable actions. Technically, NFTs are tracked on a public digital ledger. However, they’re encrypted, so identities are kept anonymous. Plus, individual NFTs can have both public, se ..read more

Ephrat Livni recently penned a DealBook op-ed regarding the role of code when it comes to shaping policy. He doesn’t make an argument either way but instead presents the two sides: Code is an impartial arbiter that some people see as a regulatory force. There’s no such thing as neutral code because humans program it. So today, we’re breaking down the arguments without judgment. On which side do you land? Pro: Code Should Lead Policy Argument Many people in the cryptocurrency community view the new technology and the emerging market it birthed as the ultimate expression of a free, decentraliz ..read more

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