Demystifying Digital Assets, Blockchain Technology and Cryptocurrencies

8:55 Welcome and Introductions

9:00 Blockchain, Bitcoin, Cryptocurrencies and Tokens: What You Need to Know

Jeremy M. McLaughlin, K&L Gates, San Francisco, CA
Judith Rinearson, K&L Gates, New York, NY
Margaret N. Rosenfeld, K&L Gates, Raleigh

Let's start at the beginning. What is blockchain (and what is it not)? What are tokens, and how are digital asset records stored? Who regulates this industry and how? Jeremy McLaughlin, Judith Rinearson and Margaret Rosenfeld help demystify terminology and provide you with a better understanding of the technology and industry.

10:35 Break

10:50 Hot Topics and Expectations for the Future

Andrew M. Hinkes, K&L Gates, Miami, FL
Brandon Huffman, Odin Law and Media, Raleigh
Jeremy M. McLaughlin, K&L Gates, San Francisco, CA
Judith Rinearson, K&L Gates, New York, NY
Margaret N. Rosenfeld, K&L Gates, Raleigh

In this session, hear about hot topics such as non-fungible tokens (NFTs), DeFi, stablecoins and central bank digital currencies (CBDCs). Review practical examples, applicable laws and legal risks involved. The session ends with a full panel discussion about expectations for the future highlighting potential laws and regulation, governmental concerns, and disruption to banking and centralized authorities.

12:15 Adjourn

Thank you

Thank you for joining us for Demystifying Digital Assets, Blockchain Technology and Cryptocurrencies.

Description

{Inse

What are digital assets and how does blockchain work? What are tokens and how can they be used?

Contributors

Andrew M. "Drew" Hinkes

Andrew M. "Drew" Hinkes is a partner at K&L Gates in Miami, FL. He is a member of the Complex Commercial Litigation and Disputes practice group, and digital assets and blockchain subgroups.

Drew was nominated as one of Coindesk's Most Influential People in Blockchain in 2017. His transactional, regulatory and litigation practice focuses on digital assets, blockchains, smart contracts, and how those new technologies intersect with existing law and regulation, and impact legal relationships. He has advised diverse clients ranging from startups to multinational regulated businesses regarding securities matters, payment systems, money services business and money transmitter regulation, secured transactions including crypto assets, structuring and governance over decentralized entities and applications, non-fungible tokens, stablecoins, and other related emergent technologies.

Drew was appointed as an Adjunct Associate Professor by the NYU Stern Business School and an Adjunct Professor of Law by the NYU School of Law, where he co-teaches "Digital Currency, Blockchains, and the Future of the Financial Services Industry," and is a Lecturer at Externado Universidad de Colombia, based in Bogota. Since 2019, Drew has been involved in law reform to facilitate innovation in commercial law as applied to digital assets, serving as an observer for Uniform Law Commission/American Law Institute, Uniform Commercial Code and Emerging Technologies Digital Assets Working Group, and multiple UNIDROIT Working Group on Digital Assets and Private Law subgroups.

In 2020, Drew co-authored a textbook, "Digital Assets and Blockchain Technology: U.S. Law and Regulation," which is used to teach digital assets and blockchain law by multiple law schools. Drew has published multiple law review articles related to crypto assets and decentralized technology systems, and frequently lectures at academic symposia and industry trade conferences.

Click here for more information about Drew.
Brandon J. Huffman

Brandon J. Huffman is a founding attorney at Odin Law and Media in Raleigh. He is focused on representing technology and media clients in business, intellectual property, content clearance, privacy, commercial contracts, employment and internet regulatory matters. Why? Because of a passion for creativity and technology. Brandon is a so-so visual artist, a lousy programmer and a pretty-okay film editor, but he is a great lawyer. He keeps an old comic by Barbara Smaller that features a little boy in a cowboy outfit telling his father “Well if I can’t be a cowboy, I’ll be a lawyer for cowboys.” The creative and innovative clients Brandon serves are his cowboys.

Brandon volunteers as general counsel to the International Game Developers’ Association, the largest trade organization focused on supporting individual game developers. In early 2017, he was awarded the IGDA’s MVP award.

Brandon earned his B.A. from The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and his J.D., cum laude, from The Ohio State University.

Click here for more information about Brandon.
Jeremy M. McLaughlin

Jeremy M. McLaughlin is a partner at K&L Gates in San Francisco, CA and a member of the firm's Payments, Bank Regulatory and Consumer Financial Services group. His practice focuses on regulatory compliance and enforcement for fintechs, digital asset/cryptocurrency companies, and other consumer financial products and services, including emerging payment and prepaid products. He also maintains an active litigation practice, focusing on dispositive issues and appeals for consumer financial services matters.

Jeremy represents a broad range of clients across the financial services, fintech, and digital assets industries, ranging from startups to blockchain platforms to some of the world's largest financial institutions. They have included money services businesses, cryptocurrency platforms, token issuers (including NFTs), digital wallet providers, DeFi platforms, banks, retailers, credit and prepaid card companies, debt collectors, and mortgage lenders and servicers.

Jeremy counsels clients on compliance with state and federal consumer protection laws, money transmitter laws, international remittances, anti-money laundering laws, abandoned property laws, gift card rules, sweepstakes laws, and payment network rules, as well as advising on privacy, data security, and credit and licensed lending laws. He assists clients negotiate and draft agreements involving payment technologies and licensing issues, custodial arrangements, and draft terms and conditions and disclosures for new products. He also serves as regulatory counsel in connection with investments, including conducting due diligences of payment companies and digital asset/cryptocurrency platforms.

In his litigation practice, Jeremy focuses on appeals and dispositive motions before state and federal courts, especially proceedings involving consumer financial laws. He has defended clients in class actions involving state and federal consumer protection laws, such as the Electronic Fund Transfer Act (EFTA & Regulation E), Truth in Lending Act (TILA & Regulation Z), Telephone Consumer Protection Act (TCPA), Credit Card Accountability Responsibility and Disclosure Act (CARD Act), UDAP, and UDAAP. He has prepared over 10 briefs for the US Supreme Court, and dozens of briefs for federal and state appellate courts. He has argued before the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals.

Jeremy earned his B.A., cum laude, in Policy Studies from Dickinson College and his J.D. from Georgetown University Law Center.

Click here for more information about Jeremy.
Judith Rinearson

Judith Rinearson is a partner at K&L Gates in New York, NY and in London. She concentrates her practice in emerging payments, including: prepaid, mobile, P2P and electronic payments; crypto/virtual currencies and blockchain; reward and loyalty programs; cannabis-related payments; and payment basics such as ACH, credit and debit card compliance.

Judith has more than 25 years of experience in the financial services industry, including 18 years at American Express's General Counsel's Office. Her expertise focuses particularly in the areas of emerging payments and compliance with state and federal consumer protection laws, anti-money laundering laws, state money transmitter licensing laws and abandoned property laws. She also spent nearly two years in her firms' London offices, working with authorized e-money institutions and payment institutions, as well as various EU/UK payments laws including PSD2, GDPR and MLD4/5. Judie currently co-chairs the firm's global fintech group, and has spearheaded the firm's blockchain initiative.

Fully experienced in both the "issuing" and "acquiring" side of the payments business, Judie has drafted and negotiated complex agreements with strategic co-branded partners, processors), ATM networks, major retailers and service providers, prepaid card issuers and program managers, international remittance companies, virtual and mobile payment providers, as well as consumer-facing Terms and Conditions and disclosures that usually accompany such products. She has hands-on experience in all legal aspects of launching and managing a range of payment products, from prepaid cards, to Bitcoin exchanges and miners, wire transfer services, ACH, electronic banking, money orders and credit cards. Her practice includes advising on fraud avoidance and compliance with federal banking and anti-money laundering laws, as well as state money transmitter licensing laws, consumer protection laws and abandoned property laws. On the international level, Judie has supervised the launch of a range of payment and foreign currency products in Europe, Asia and Latin America; met with international regulators; and spoken on the issue of payment regulation.

Judith earned her B.A. from Smith College and her J.D. from New York University School of Law.

Click here for more information about Judith.
Margaret N. Rosenfeld

Margaret N. Rosenfeld is a partner at K&L Gates in Raleigh. She has more than 20 years of corporate and securities law experience both within the United States and internationally. Her practice includes public company reporting, corporate governance, public and private financings, security token and digital asset offerings, blockchain technology matters, corporate investigations (internal and government), mergers and acquisitions, and intellectual property protection and licensing.

Margaret is one of two female attorneys in North Carolina to be ranked within the category of Corporate/M&A law by Chambers USA: Americas Leading Business Lawyers, first being listed in 2013.

With respect to public company representation, Margaret has assisted public companies, underwriters and directors with initial public offerings and secondary financings on numerous stock exchanges in the United States and internationally, public reporting requirements both pre- and post-Sarbanes-Oxley, corporate governance issues and internal and external corporate investigations, including interaction with the Securities and Exchange Commission, the NYSE, and Nasdaq. She also has broad experience assisting emerging growth companies as well as mature companies with legal, business and strategic planning, from contractual assistance such as with licensing agreements, distribution agreements, franchise agreements, employment agreements and joint venture agreements to assistance with public and private debt and equity financing. She is particularly known for assisting companies facing transformative changes as they balance legal and business concerns.

Before joining K&L Gates, Margaret practiced with a full-service business firm in RTP as well as with two global law firms in London, Frankfurt, and Tokyo.

Margaret earned her B.A., summa cum laude, from Rutgers University and her J.D. from George Washington University Law School.

Click here for more information about Margaret.

Click here to view Forms and CLE Policies, Terms and Conditions.

If paying by check, click here for a printable registration form. Please reference the live webcast program code 180LW7.

Thank you

Description

Contributors

Andrew M. "Drew" Hinkes

Brandon J. Huffman

Jeremy M. McLaughlin

Judith Rinearson

Margaret N. Rosenfeld