Bitcoin is "fast approaching a critical technical challenge that will fundamentally shape the course of its future" stated Andrea Castillo, Mercatus Technology Policy Program Manager. In an article published by reason.com, Ms. Castillo discusses how an "arbitrary protocol quirk" implemented as a short-term security measure could "potentially undermine Bitcoin's scalability, usability, and even its long-term viability." According to Ms. Castillo, the "final outcome of this Bitcoin block size limit debate will affect how easy it will be to use Bitcoin for common everyday transactions and complex

The National Futures Association ("NFA") fined FX Evolve and its principal (together, "FX Evolve") for failing to observe high standards of commercial honor and failing to supervise. The NFA found that FX Evolve violated NFA Compliance Rule 2-36(c) when it knowingly conducted business with firms and individuals that were not registered with the NFA and facilitated unauthorized trades between individuals who had previously pleaded guilty to bank fraud, conspiracy and income tax evasion. The NFA also found that FX Evolve violated NFA Compliance Rule 2-9(c) when the firm (i) failed to provide AML

In its letter to the IRS, the Investment Company Institute ("ICI") requested guidance regarding the tax treatment of contributions from a stable net asset value ("NAV") fund to a floating NAV fund. The ICI stated that in order to comply with the SEC's money market fund rules, investment advisers may decide to make cash contributions to existing money market funds to bring the shadow NAV of a fund up to $1.0000. The ICI explained that while, for book purposes, the contribution would not result in gain or income to the fund, and largely would be treated as paid-in capital, the tax treatment of

IOSCO published its final report outlining eight good practices for reducing overreliance on external credit rating agencies ("CRAs") in the asset management industry. In the report, IOSCO explained that the use of CRAs is driven primarily by demand, and stated that references to external credit ratings may derive from regulatory requirements or an investor's internal rules. IOSCO cautioned that the use of CRAs could result in "mechanistic reliance," and speculated that CRAs could trigger forced asset sales in the event of downgrades. IOSCO outlined eight recommendations that investors can use

The European Supervisory Authorities ("ESAs") published a second consultation paper on the draft Regulatory Technical Standards ("RTS"). The document outlines the framework for the margin requirement for non-centrally cleared derivatives under EMIR. The second consultation paper builds on the proposed outlined in the ESAs' first Consultation Paper, published in April 2014. After reviewing the responses to the first consultation paper, the ESAs engaged in dialogue with other authorities to identify operational issues that may arise from the implementation of the EMIR framework. The ESAs are