
Seven Takeaways from the SEC DAO Report - ca98am79
https://writing.kemitchell.com/2017/07/25/DAO-Report-of-Investigation.html
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davidgerard
> See SEC v. Shavers, No. 4:13-CV-416, 2014 WL 4652121, at *1 (E.D. Tex. Sept.
> 18, 2014) (holding that an investment of Bitcoin, a virtual currency, meets
> the first prong of Howey);

That, by the way, is the Pirateat40 Bitcoin Ponzi of 2012.

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crwalker
The SEC Report on the DAO isn't surprising, but I would love to see the SEC
draw a clear line in the sand by issuing another report on a better token
offering that is determined to not be a security.

The ability to fund development of important network infrastructure with a
related digital asset is too useful to remain in indefinite legal limbo!

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Animats
Probably nobody has asked for a "no action" letter yet.[1] You can ask the SEC
"Is it OK if I do this?" All of those are public record.

[1] [https://www.sec.gov/fast-
answers/answersnoactionhtm.html](https://www.sec.gov/fast-
answers/answersnoactionhtm.html)

~~~
crwalker
_The SEC is studying the effects of distributed ledger and other innovative
technologies and encourages market participants to engage with us, " said SEC
Chairman Jay Clayton_

Then it's a no-brainer to test whether it's possible to make a non-security
token that still retains some of the benefits of crypto tokens.

I am working on a crypto token designed to avoid the bad incentives and legal
issues with current ICOs that might make a good test case:

* Token provides immediate practical benefit (collaboration on important data using distributed storage, narrowing focus from Sia, Storj, Filecoin, etc) from day one

* Token sold in small tranches over an extremely long time period, ideally at stable price

* No intermediate ERC20 or similar token pre-sale

* Pre-mined tokens (eventually sold) make up small fraction of total supply

For the Howey Test, I think it's most reasonable to aim for either no
expectation of profit or no common enterprise.

If anyone is interested in helping test this, contact me!

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Sangermaine
For your own sake PLEASE consult a lawyer familiar with securities law before
making declarations that your token is obviously not a security and
sufficiently avoids at least one prong of the Howey Test. The SEC is starting
to crack down on these activities, so the consequences can be enormously bad
for you if you aren't careful.

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shellbound1
The report also seems to mention buyers violating some Section 5. Does this
mean that even so much as buying a token (edit: later found to be a security)
could potentially land you in legal trouble?

