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To analyze and draw conclusions from the “Framework for ‘Investment Contract’ Analysis of Digital Assets” (the “Framework”), released by the US Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC”) on April 3, 2019, and the SEC’s corresponding no-action letter to TurnKey Jet, Inc. (“TKJ”), which is the SEC’s first no-action letter publicly agreeing with the view that the digital asset described therein is not a security.

Explains how the Framework assists market participants in analyzing whether a digital asset is a security, by applying the Howey factors for identifying an investment contract. Discusses the SEC’s TKJ Letter, highlighting the factors the SEC emphasized in its analysis of the Framework.

While largely reiterating prior guidance, the Framework provides a helpful overview of the SEC’s views on when a digital asset is a security and how to properly analyze the prongs of Howey with respect to digital assets. The Framework also leaves certain important questions unanswered, including, for example, whether digital assets distributed by means of a so-called “Airdrop” are securities under the Framework, and the extent to which the Framework is meant to interact with digital assets that were issued or otherwise operate on platforms that are primarily overseas.

Expert guidance from lawyers with broad experience in financial services, securities, investment funds, derivatives, and digital assets regulation and compliance.

Describe an important recent enforcement action by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) regarding expense allocations by private equity funds.

Discusses a recent enforcement action by the SEC regarding a registered investment adviser’s handling of expense allocation with respect to two private fund clients and certain of their underlying portfolio companies.

The settlement and sanctions are noteworthy because: (i) there was no suggestion that the misallocations of expenses were designed to systematically favor one private fund client over the other, that the manager benefited from such misallocations, or that the failure to allocate expenses in accordance with the policy had been deliberate and (ii) while not stated explicitly, it appears likely that a significant portion of the disgorgement related to misallocations that occurred before the manager was a registered investment adviser.

Registered investment advisers should ensure that they and their portfolio companies have written policies in place designed to fairly allocate all expenses among all entities that benefit from the activities driving such expenses and that none of the sponsor’s clients are directly or indirectly benefited or harmed from allocation policies at the portfolio company level.

Description of a noteworthy SEC enforcement action regarding expense allocation and practical guidance from investment management lawyers to remind private equity sponsors to ensure that they have adopted and implemented expense allocation policies.

To discuss and interpret the recently published summary of the select priorities of the SEC’s Office of Compliance Inspections and Examinations (“OCIE”) in connection with the National Exam Program for 2015.

This article highlights the broad OCIE focus areas and provides detail on the associated initiatives.

OCIE’s priorities appear to place particular emphasis on retail investors and investors saving for retirement and market-wide risks, including cybersecurity. The examination priorities also emphasize OCIE’s evolving ability to analyze data to identify and examine registrants that may be engaged in illegal activity. Of particular interest to private equity fund sponsors, the National Exam Program will continue to conduct examinations that focus on fees and expenses borne by investors in private equity funds.

In view of the OCIE’s priorities, recent public comments by OCIE officials (concerning, for example, presentation of performance data) and our experience representing private equity firms being examined by OCIE, private equity fund sponsors should continue to be prepared for rigorous examinations on these issues and the areas of focus highlighted by the SEC in the past three years.

The article summarizes the OCIE’s recently published examination priorities for 2015 that cover a broad range of market participants and target a variety of their products, practices and procedures, including a continued focus on private equity fund sponsors.

Aim of the present monograph is the economic analysis of the role of MNEs regarding globalisation and digital economy and in parallel there is a reference and examination of some legal aspects concerning MNEs, cyberspace and e‐commerce as the means of expression of the digital economy. The whole effort of the author is focused on the examination of various aspects of MNEs and their impact upon globalisation and vice versa and how and if we are moving towards a global digital economy.

Partly in the unfolding course of events and partly by intention, we in the transatlantic/English‐speaking region of the world now have an established and standard bibliographic system for printed verbal media—books, serials, and microform. Among them, with some computer assistance, Bowker, H.W. Wilson, Whitaker, the Library of Congress, the British Library, the British Museum Library, and a number of supplementary publishers and collections provide major twentieth century in‐print means of access, as close to being comprehensive, reliable, and coordinated as can humanly be expected at present. You can be reasonably confident that if the information on a print medium exists, you can get it—“you” being either reference/ acquisitions staff or a user.