Blockchain, Cryptocurrency and Digital Assets

On July 1, 2024, Silvergate announced it has agreed to settlements with the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System (“Federal Reserve”), the California Department of Financial Protection and Innovation (“DFPI”) and the Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”). In a statement, Silvergate noted its decision to liquidate voluntarily and without government assistance in March 2023, and that, as of November 2023, all deposits had been repaid to banking customers, soon after which Silvergate ceased banking operations. The announced settlements, which facilitate the surrender of Silvergate’s bank charter, are part of the Bank’s continued orderly wind down and conclude investigations by the Federal Reserve, DFPI, and SEC. Cravath represented Silvergate in connection with the investigations, resulting settlements, and voluntary liquidation.

On November 13, 2023, the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida denied plaintiffs’ motion to certify a class asserting market manipulation claims under the federal securities laws against Cravath clients Robinhood Markets, Inc., Robinhood Financial LLC and Robinhood Securities, LLC (together, “Robinhood”).

Cravath represented Robinhood Markets, Inc. (“Robinhood”) in its Share Purchase Agreement (the “Share Purchase Agreement”) with the United States Marshals Service (the “USMS”), acting for and on behalf of the United States, pursuant to which Robinhood agreed to purchase 55,273,469 shares of the company’s Class A common stock (the “Shares”) from the USMS for an aggregate purchase price of $605,694,411.59, or approximately $10.96 per share. The transaction closed on August 31, 2023.

On November 18, 2024, Cravath partner Benjamin Gruenstein participated in the American Conference Institute’s 3rd Annual Forum on Digital Assets: Compliance, Enforcement & Regulatory Oversight, which was held from November 18‑19 in New York. The event convened government officials, crypto companies and legal and regulatory experts to address pressing developments in the regulation of digital assets. Ben moderated a panel entitled “What Keeps You Up at Night? Senior Executives Discuss Their Top Priorities and Post-Election Predictions,” during which panelists discussed their views on the current regulatory environment, how they are revisiting risk and their thoughts for the future of the industry.

On November 8, 2024, Cravath partner Elad Roisman participated in the third annual Web3 Founder Summit, which was hosted by Bloccelerate VC in New York. Elad moderated a panel entitled “Crypto Regulatory Outlook for 2025 & Beyond.”

On November 5, 2024, Cravath published the latest edition of its Finance & Capital Markets Quarterly Review, which provides an update on the bond, equity and loan markets and on restructuring activity during the third quarter of 2024. This edition also examines several recent litigation decisions and restructuring developments, as well as a variety of SEC rulemaking, comment and enforcement updates.

On November 1, 2024, Cravath partner Jeffrey T. Dinwoodie published a short essay in the Yale Journal on Regulation’s Notice & Comment blog entitled “An Expanding ‘Exchange’ Regulatory Construct? The Marketplace Awaits Key SEC Decisions.”

On October 25, 2024, Cravath published an article by partners D. Scott Bennett, Benjamin Gruenstein, David J. Kappos, Evan Norris, Ryan J. Patrone, Elad Roisman and Sasha Rosenthal‑Larrea, in collaboration with Jason Trager, Senior Director of Blockchain & Digital Assets at FTI Technology, entitled “Bringing Blockchain Due Diligence into Focus Alongside Uptick in Strategic Dealmaking.” The article discusses the renewed momentum around blockchain and digital assets, predicting an increase in deal activity including M&A transactions and joint ventures going into 2025, and explores the key elements that dealmaking teams should consider when conducting due diligence for these transactions.