Program Leadership
Founder and Co-director, Rutgers Center for Corporate Law and Governance
Head of the Blockchain and Fintech Program
About the Program
The Blockchain and Fintech Program is organized under the auspices of the Rutgers Center for Corporate Law and Governance. It is engaged in multidisciplinary blockchain and fintech research, as well as a curriculum- and project-based set of activities designed to advance faculty and student engagement in blockchain, cryptocurrency, cybersecurity, fintech, and related subjects. It seeks to help prepare the next generation of lawyers, business leaders, politicians, entrepreneurs, and others to be able to develop and apply these technologies and business practices.
Fintech Updates
Annual Report
Research and Publications
- Carol Goforth & Yuliya Guseva, Regulation of Cryptoassets (2d ed. West Academic 2022)
- Yuliya Guseva & Irena Hutton, “Digital Asset Innovations and Regulatory Fragmentation: The SEC versus the CFTC,” B.C. Law Rev. (forthcoming 2023)
- Yuliya Guseva, “When the Means Undermine the End: The Leviathan of Securities Law and Enforcement in Digital-Asset Markets,” The Stanford Journal of Blockchain Law & Policy (peer-reviewed, forthcoming 2022)
- Douglas Eakeley & Yuliya Guseva with Leo Choi & Katarina Gonzalez, “Crypto-Enforcement Around the World,” 94 Southern California Law Review Postscript 99 (2021)
- Yuliya Guseva, “The SEC, Digital Assets, and Game Theory,” 46 The Journal of Corporation Law 629 (2021)
- Yuliya Guseva, “A Conceptual Framework for Digital-Asset Securities: Tokens and Coins as Debt and Equity,” 80 Maryland Law Review 166 (2020)
- Douglas Eakeley & Yuliya Guseva with Leo Choi & Katarina Gonzalez, “The Comparative Crypto-Enforcement Report” (2021)
Programs and Events
The Rutgers Fintech and Blockchain Collaboratory
The Collaboratory is a series of bimonthly gatherings of leading lawyers, former regulators, and academics interested in regulatory and industry developments in fintech, defi, crypto, and blockchain-based businesses. The purpose of the Collaboratory is to create a forum for policy discussion and analysis.
Fintech Symposia
Rutgers annual symposia on fintech, crypto, and financial innovation feature distinguished keynote speakers and panelists from major regulatory agencies, the industry, and academia.
- Dante Disparte, Chief Strategy Officer and Head of Global Policy for Circle
- Christopher W. Gerold (Moderator), Partner, Securities Litigation Practice, Corporate Investigations & Integrity Practice, Lowenstein Crypto Practice, Lowenstein Sandler
- Dorothy DeWitt, Chief Finance Counsel, United States Senate
- Yuliya Guseva, Vice Dean and Professor of Law, Rutgers Law School
- James Park, Professor of Law, UCLA School of Law
Fireside Chat with Securities and Exchange Commission Director of the Division of Enforcement Gurbir S. Grewal moderated by:
- Douglas S. Eakeley, Alan V. Lowenstein Professor of Corporate & Business Law and Distinguished Professor of Professional Practice, Rutgers Law School
- Yuliya Guseva, Vice Dean and Professor of Law, Rutgers Law School
Fireside Chat with Coinbase Chief Policy Officer Faryar Shirzad moderated by:
- Ethan L. Silver – Partner, Investment Management Practice; Chair of FinTech Practice; Chair of Broker-Dealer Practice; Co-chair of Lowenstein Crypto Practice, Lowenstein Sandler
- Jon Fink Isaksen, Head of Policy, EMEA at Uniswap Labs
- Martin Hanzl, Head of New Technologies at Ernst & Young Law Austria, Attorney-at-Law, and Co-Reporter of the Project Blockchain & Smart Contracts at the European Law Institute (ELI),
- Sebastian Schwamberger, Professor of Civil, Commercial & Digitization Law at the University of Rostock (Germany)
- Moderated by our International Fintech Fellow Stéphane Blemus.
- Lewis Cohen, Co-Founder of DLX Law
- Marco Dell’Erba, Professor of Corporate & Financial Law at the University of Zurich
- Lee Reiners, Policy Director at the Duke Financial Economics Center and a lecturing fellow at Duke Law
- Lee’s presentation is available here.
Regulating Financial Innovation: The Future of Crypto and Blockchain (October 24, 2022)
Fireside Chat
- Rostin Behnam, Chairman of the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC)
- Douglas S. Eakeley (Moderator), Alan V. Lowenstein Professor of Corporate & Business Law and Distinguished Professor of Professional Practice, Rutgers Law School
- Yuliya Guseva (Moderator), Vice Dean and Professor of Law, Rutgers Law School
Managing Regulatory Risk Panel
- Ethan L. Silver (Moderator), Partner, Investment Management Practice; Chair of FinTech Practice; Chair of Broker-Dealer Practice; Co-chair of Lowenstein Crypto Practice, Lowenstein Sandler
- Ryne Miller, General Counsel, FTX US
- Joseph Rotunda, Director of Enforcement Division, Texas State Securities Board
- Andrew Siegel, General Counsel and Chief Compliance Officer, Galaxy Digital
Challenges of Financial Innovation
- Christopher W. Gerold (Moderator), Partner, Securities Litigation Practice, Corporate Investigations & Integrity Practice, Lowenstein Crypto Practice, Lowenstein Sandler
- Yuliya Guseva, Vice Dean and Professor of Law, Rutgers Law School
- M. Todd Henderson, Michael J. Marks Professor of Law, University of Chicago Law School
- J.W. Verret, Associate Professor of Law, Antonin Scalia Law School at George Mason University
- Professor Xuan-Thao Nguyen, University of Washington School of Law Pendleton Miller Chair in Law & Director, Asian Law Center
The Future of Cryptoasset Regulation (February 16, 2022)
Keynote
- Hon. J. Christopher Giancarlo, former Chairman of the United States Commodities Futures Trading Commission
Panelists
- Douglas S. Eakeley, Alan V. Lowenstein Professor of Corporate & Business Law and Distinguished Professor of Professional Practice at Rutgers Law School (moderator)
- Yuliya Guseva, Professor of Law and Head of the Blockchain and Fintech Program at Rutgers Law School
- Kristin Johnson, Asa Griggs Candler Professor of Law and Co-Associate Dean for Faculty Research at Emory University School of Law
- Lawrence V. Lewitinn, Managing Editor, Global Capital Markets and Co-Host of First Mover at CoinDesk (moderator)
- Drew Propson, Head of Technology and Innovation in Financial Services at World Economic Forum
- Lee A. Schneider, General Counsel at Ava Labs
- Steven L. Schwarcz, Stanley A. Star Distinguished Professor of Law & Business at Duke University School of Law
- Maria T. Vullo, CEO at Vullo Advisory Services, PLLC
April 2022 meeting:
- Dan Awrey, Professor of Law at Cornell Law School
Crypto-Firm Meets Law School:
- Gareth Genner, CEO and Co-Founder of Trust Stamp
- View a recording of the Crypto-Firm meets Law School presentation
September 2021 meeting:
- Yesha Yadav, Associate Dean for Diversity, Equity and Community & Professor of Law, Vanderbilt Law School
November 2021 meeting:
- Carol Goforth, University Professor and Clayton N. Little Professor of Law at the University of Arkansas School of Law
- Brian C. Avello, General Counsel of the Maker Foundation
February 2021 meeting:
- David L. Yermack, Albert Fingerhut Professor of Finance and Business Transformation, Chair, Finance Department, NYU Stern School of Business
April 2021 meeting:
- Todd Henderson, Michael J. Marks Professor of Law, Chicago Law School,
- Yuliya Guseva, Professor of Law, Rutgers Law School
May 2021 panel discussion:
- Francesca Don Angelo, Deputy General Counsel & Corporate Secretary at Galaxy Digital
- Elizabeth Lan Davis, partner at Murphy & McGonigle and former Chief Trial Attorney for the CFTC’s Division of Enforcement
- Merav Ozair, Fintech Faculty Member at Rutgers Business School
- Lee Schneider, General Counsel at Ava Labs
Courses
This course introduces students to the regulatory framework designed for legacy financial institutions and explores regulatory approaches to financial innovation, including cryptocurrencies, digital assets, defi, and fintech. The course was first offered in the spring 2021 semester. It was co-taught by Professor Yuliya Guseva, Rutgers Law School, and Professor Merav Ozair, Rutgers Business School. Several distinguished guest speakers joined the class and shared their experiences with the students. Among the speakers were Markos Zachariadis, Professor in Financial Technology at Manchester Business School and Fintech Research Fellow at Cambridge University; Lee Schneider, General Counsel at Ava Labs; John Ho, Global Head of Legal, Financial Markets at Standard Chartered Bank; and Lewis Cohen, partner at DLx Law.
This course explores cryptocurrencies, blockchain technology, decentralized finance, and cryptoassets. Students examine financial regulation, securities law, and commodity derivatives regulation applied to crypto-related institutions, assets, and services. The focus of this class is the federal regulatory framework in the United States, U.S. state regulation, international law, and law of the European Union.
Blog Posts and News Articles
- Yuliya Guseva, When the Means Undermine the Ends: The Leviathan of Securities Law and Enforcement in Digital-Asset Markets, Oxford Business Law Blog, October 21, 2021
- Yuliya Guseva, The SEC, Digital Assets, and Game Theory, Columbia Law School Blue Sky Blog, August 27, 2021
- Yuliya Guseva, Securities Regulation in Cryptoasset Markets: A Cost-Benefit Analysis, Columbia Law School Blue Sky Blog, January 4, 2021, (solicited contribution featuring The Leviathan of Securities Regulation)
- Douglas Eakeley and Yuliya Guseva, Crypto-Enforcement Around the World, Chinese University of Hong Kong, Machine Lawyering Blog, January 24, 2021, (solicited contribution)
- Douglas Eakeley and Yuliya Guseva, Crypto-Enforcement Around the World, Columbia Law School Blue Sky Blog, November 24, 2020
Sponsors
The Fintech and Blockchain Program is generously supported by the University Blockchain Research Initiative, the Ripple Impact Fund, and the Silicon Valley Community Foundation.
Fintech Fellows and Researchers
Stéphane Blemus
Stéphane Blemus is secretary-general of Societe Generale-FORGE, the regulated subsidiary of European bank Societe Generale Group dedicated to digital asset projects, where he is responsible for regulatory and ecosystem matters. Stéphane represents SG-Forge on digital asset regulations in various working groups and trade associations, such as Association for Financial Markets in Europe-AFME, Association française des Marchés Financiers-AMAFI, digital asset association ADAN, and the International Capital Market Association-ICMA. Before joining Rutgers, Stéphane has been previously a postdoctoral researcher on CBDC and digital assets issues at the Copenhagen University (Denmark) and is Doctor of laws with a PhD presented on EU & US financial regulation of blockchain-based assets (Paris Sorbonne University). His academic work focuses on the regulatory frameworks applicable to digital markets and digital assets (stablecoins, security tokens, virtual currencies/CBDC, etc.), with a comparative view among various jurisdictions (European Union, United States of America, Switzerland, etc.), with several papers published since 2017 in international journals, such as the Oxford Capital Markets Law Journal and the Corporate Finance and Capital Markets Law Review (RTDF).
Sangita Gazi
Sangita Gazi is a third-year Ph.D. candidate at the Faculty of Law, University of Hong Kong. Her Ph.D. dissertation focuses on the macroeconomic impacts of central banks’ innovation policies, particularly in the context of their policies concerning central bank digital currency. Sangita’s research highlights the intricate interaction of law, technologies, and finance and how they are translated into an emerging economy’s context. Her works on payment systems, digital currencies, and regulatory and supervisory technologies have been published by peer-reviewed journals, such as the Cambridge Law Review, the Banking and Finance Law Review, and the Arkansas Law Review, among others. Her collaborative policy briefs and working papers have been published by the Bank for International Settlements, the United Nations Capital Development Fund, and the Asian Development Bank. Sangita also holds a Research Fellowship at Yale Law School. She is a Research Associate at the University College London Centre for Blockchain Technologies (UCL CBT).
- Soorim Choi, CFA, JD (expected 2025): Soorim is an evening student and a Research Assistant for Professor Sabrina Safrin on Van Dwelling and the right to privacy. He was a former global research reporter for South Korean governmental agency, Local Finance Association (LOFA) and published three articles on the U.S. GASB (Governmental Accounting Standard Board) and the state government of Georgia’s practice of governmental accounting. He earned his bachelor’s degree in economics at New York University with University Honors Scholar.
- Christopher Gitelman, JD (expected 2024): A second-year law student, Christopher Gitelman is a staff editor for Rutgers Law Review and a member of the executive board for the Society for Corporate Law and Governance. Formerly, he worked as a paralegal at Connell Foley and as a researcher for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania’s District Court. He currently works as a summer intern at Sills Cummis and Gross with the Labor and Employment, Tax, Real Estate, and Litigation groups.
- Parker S. Ramsay, JD (expected 2025): A second-year law student, Parker Ramsay is an Associate Editor of Rutgers Race and The Law Review, the Treasurer of the Student Bar Association, and former Co-Chair of the Student-Faculty Committee. He previously worked as a legal assistant for a real estate law solo practitioner and is currently a paralegal at the New Jersey Attorney General’s Office in the Division of Consumer Affairs.
Çagla Yetis, JD (expected 2024): A third-year law student, Çagla is Managing Editor of the Rutgers University Law Review and a part of the Criminal & Youth Justice Clinic. Formerly, she served as the Vice Chair of the Women’s Law Forum and Vice President of the Society for Corporate Law & Governance. She was previously a Summer Associate at Lowenstein Sandler LLP, where she worked with the FinTech and Crypto groups.
- Mitchell Chan, JD (2023): A third-year law student, Mitchell is Senior Articles Editor of the Rutgers University Law Review, Co-Chair of the Moot Court Board, and former President of the Society for Corporate Law & Governance. He previously interned with the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority’s Department of Enforcement.
- Conor Dickson, JD (2023): A third-year law student, Conor is a student fellow of the Rutgers Law School Blockchain and Fintech Program. Conor earned his Bachelor’s degree in Philosophy at the University of Scranton and currently works as an Intern on the Legal team at DriveWealth, a U.S. equities brokerage that partners with Fintech firms around the world.
- Kale Pasch, CFA, JD (Class of 2024). Kale is a research fellow at CCLG and currently serves as a Teacher’s Assistant
for the “Regulation of Cryptoassets” course at the law school. His background includes regulatory risk at Bank of America, product
management at Fulton Bank, CEO of a financial technology company (Froogal), and national bank regulation with the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency.
- Riham Alzabey, JD (2022): Riham is the Senior Articles Editor for the Rutgers Business Law Journal, a Teaching Associate in the Legal Analysis, Writing and Research Skills course, and the student fellow for the Center for Corporate Law and Governance.
- Allison Berdichevskiy, JD (2022): Allison is the Publication Editor for the Rutgers Computer and Technology Law Journal, a member of the Alternative Dispute Resolution Competition Team, and a clinical student attorney for both the Rutgers Federal Tax Law Clinic and Intellectual Property Law Clinic.
- Hang Miao, PhD Student, Rutgers University
- Kale Pasch, JD (2024): Kale is a first-year law student at Rutgers University-Camden. Prior to joining the Center’s Fintech Research Program, he co-founded a financial technology startup and worked for the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency as a national bank examiner.
Melissa L. Perez, JD (2022): Melissa is a candidate at Rutgers School of Law (Newark) and currently works as a law clerk at Inglesino, Webster, Wyciskala & Taylor LLC. Melissa earned her Bachelor’s degree in International Affairs from George Washington University. Prior to law school, Melissa served the United Nations Joint Inspection Unit in Geneva, Switzerland to conduct research for an organizational management and accountability report.
- Allison Berdichevskiy, JD (2022)
- Hang Miao, PhD Student, Rutgers University
- Matthew Moore, JD (2021)
- Nikita Shah, JD (2021)
- Kristen Scully, JD (2021)
- Andrew Serulneck, JD (2021)
- Yang Zhang, PhD Student, Rutgers University
- Leo Choi, JD (2020)
Leo is currently an Associate at Sosnow & Associates PLLC. - Katarina Gonzalez, JD (2020)
In 2020, Katarina published a note on permissioned blockchains and smart contracts in the Rutgers University Law Review. She is currently working for WingIt Innovations LLC as an eCommerce and Contracts Manager.