Zachary J. Zweihorn

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Mr. Zweihorn is counsel in Davis Polk’s Financial Institutions Group and the trading and markets practice. [Full Bio]

The CFTC unanimously approved final interpretive guidance describing what constitutes “actual delivery” of a virtual currency for purposes of the actual delivery exception from the provisions of the Commodity Exchange Act that prohibit any leveraged, margined, or financed transaction in a commodity with a retail customer, unless the transaction is…
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The CFTC today joined other U.S. financial regulators in providing COVID-19 related relief from certain regulatory requirements. This relief is designed to help CFTC-registered swap dealers, futures commission merchants (FCMs), introducing brokers, swap execution facilities (SEFs), designated contract markets (DCMs) and other market participants…
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On December 18, 2019, the CFTC proposed rules that would modify and codify the cross-border application of certain of its Title VII swap rules to both U.S. and non-U.S. registered swap dealers and major swap participants.  Among other changes, these proposed rules would revise (1) which cross-border swaps must be…
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On June 21, 2019, the SEC adopted security-based swap (SBS) capital, margin and segregation requirements (the SEC Rules) for SBS dealers (SBSDs) and major SBS participants, revised the capital and segregation requirements for broker-dealers that are not SBSDs to the extent they engage in SBS…
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Broker-dealer custody of on-blockchain assets has been a key hurdle in the development of a more regulated financial infrastructure for digital assets in the United States.  In a joint statement (the Joint Statement), the staffs of the SEC and FINRA outlined their concerns about broker-dealers’ ability to comply with…
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The SEC adopted its long-awaited Regulation Best Interest, establishing new standard of conduct regulations for SEC-registered broker-dealers and their associated persons that are natural persons.  At the same time, the SEC adopted (i) a new relationship summary disclosure requirement, on Form CRS, for broker-dealers and investment advisers who offer services…
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Last week, the SEC staff published new detailed guidance on its views of when a digital asset may be considered a security, in the form of two documents:  a guidance “framework” issued by the SEC’s Strategic Hub for Innovation and Financial Technology and a no-action letter from the SEC’s Division…
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Earlier this month, SEC Chairman Jay Clayton and Division of Trading and Markets Director Brett Redfearn engaged in a public dialogue on equity market structure issues.  In addition to reviewing three equity market structure initiatives adopted by the SEC in 2018 (the transaction fee pilot, enhanced order handling …
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The SEC recently voted to adopt amendments to Rule 606 of Regulation NMS (the “Final Rule”) that expand broker-dealers’ disclosure obligations with regard to how they handle investors’ orders. Specifically, the Final Rule requires broker-dealers, beginning May 20, 2019, (i) to provide, upon request, individualized reports in a…
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After a several month lull that led some to question the SEC’s focus on crypto enforcement, this week saw a spate of enforcement activity involving crypto assets: several SEC enforcement actions, an SEC trading suspension order, the first FINRA cryptocurrency enforcement action, and a preliminary court decision consistent with the…
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