Articles by author
An analysis of the application of property and insolvency laws to DeFi lending structures
DeFi lending protocols now hold billions of dollars in digital assets, yet important questions remain about the legal architecture underpinning them. This article interrogates a deceptively simple question: when digital assets are deposited into a DeFi vault or market governed by autonomous smart contracts, who owns them and what are the depositor’s rights in respect of them? In a genuinely decentralised structure, there may be no insolvency process through which to distribute assets to creditors, leaving lenders to bear the full risk of a protocol’s collapse. Insolvency practitioners appointed over borrowers are also likely to face issues applying insolvency law to collateral deposited within markets. The practicalities of these structures and the way they interface with the law are still untested in England and are likely to continue to develop in line with the industry.
4 MAY 2026BTI v Sequana: practical implications for directors trading in the zone of insolvency
In this article, the authors reflect on the recent Supreme Court judgment in BTI 2014 LLC v Sequana SA [2022] UKSC 112 and its practical implications for directors trading in the zone of insolvency.
1 JAN 2023Green expectations: ESMA’s Statement on sustainability prospectus disclosure
ESMA’s July 2023 public statement about sustainability disclosures in prospectuses attracted significant attention. Understandably so. The Statement is directed at National Competent Authorities and provides ESMA’s recommendations to follow when reviewing prospectuses, but issuers will also need to take note.
1 NOV 2023The new UK public offers and admission to trading regime: impact on debt capital markets
This article considers key concepts in the Public Offers and Admissions to Trading Regulations 2024 (UK SI) – notably, the new public offer prohibition and extension of scope to non-transferable securities. It also flags prospectus disclosure considerations, either in the UK SI itself or due to be covered in the forthcoming FCA consultation.
1 MAR 2024
