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Did New York State Just Anoint Virtual Currencies By Proposing To Regulate Them, Or Will Regulation Spoil Them For Some?, Sarah Jane Hughes
Did New York State Just Anoint Virtual Currencies By Proposing To Regulate Them, Or Will Regulation Spoil Them For Some?, Sarah Jane Hughes
Washington and Lee Law Review Online
This Essay previews issues raised by the general subject of regulating virtual currencies and the specific efforts of New York State’s Department of Financial Services’ proposed Virtual Currency Regulatory Framework (the BitLicense) in particular. It focuses on five topics in the proposal and their interplay with the current regulation of “money services” and “money transmission” in other states, using the Commonwealth of Virginia and the State of Washington approaches on a few common topics for comparison purposes. It also asks whether regulation of virtual currencies is likely to cause more widespread adoption of virtual currencies or to frustrate the proponents …
Smart Contracts, Bitcoin Bots, And Consumer Protection, Joshua A.T. Fairfield
Smart Contracts, Bitcoin Bots, And Consumer Protection, Joshua A.T. Fairfield
Washington and Lee Law Review Online
Trustless public ledgers (“TPLs”)—the technology underneath Bitcoin—do more than just create online money. The technology permits people to directly exchange money for what they want, with no intermediaries, such as credit card companies. Contract law is the law of bargained-for exchange, so a technology that enables direct exchange online will change the reality of online contracting. The current problem with consumer contracting online is that courts and companies have collaborated to create an online system in which consumers cannot bargain. Under the current regime, consumers have no choice but to click the “I Accept” button. Online, contract law is not …