When is a Token a Security? Research Analyzes Blockchain Under US Law

The legal questions surrounding the use of the bitcoin blockchain and similar decentralized ledgers for non-financial purposes took a step toward clarity today with the release of a 30-page working paper.
The publication is the result of a workshop held 15th to 18th January at which decentralised crowdfunding startupSwarm assembled thought leaders in the bitcoin legal space to address challenges facing the part of the industry referred to as the crypto 2.0 sector.
Attendees included Andy Beal, Constance Choi, Elizabeth Stark, John Clippinger and Primavera de Filippi, and members of policy group Coin Center, law firm Perkins Coie and Harvard and MIT.
The representation at the event is indicative of what participants described as the potential of the bitcoin blockchain to spur new innovations, as well as the current unclear regulatory environment in which such startups now operate in the US.
Primavera De Filippi, a research fellow at Harvard Berkman Center, told CoinDesk:
“Distributed networks can be used to promote the public good and encourage cooperation amongst peers. That’s why I’m excited about the pioneering legal work we’ve been doing. It is opening the door for new opportunities that the current regulatory framework is currently having a hard time to cope with.”

This post was published at Coin Desk on February 10, 2015.