Feb. 19, 2022
To whom it may conern. I work in real estate in Florida, and we are doing more and more crypto transactions (many in your Miami area). I have been looking for information regarding the use of crypto currency escrow accounts. Fincen says they do not have guidance on this topic, and there is this document online https://www.occ.gov/news-issuances/news-releases/2021/nr-occ-2021-121.html While there is escrow for documents and dollars, it is not clear if a title agency or any other entity permitted to have an escrow account is legally permitted to maintain and use an escrow account for a crypto currency real estate transaction. I also spoke with Ryan Saxon of the Florida Office of Financial Regulation, and he says that the state has no guidance with regards to this. In my mind I don’t see crypto as different from any foreign currency, and since escrow accounts are monitored and protected for USD why would they not be monitored and protected for a crypto currency? Then I received the below response from the SEC. I was hoping you might have more information about this. Regards, Jonathan Asbell Keller Williams - South Florida Real Estate Negotiation & Marketing From: SEC Sent: Friday, February 18, 2022 9:42 AM To: Cc: Subject: MIRO::~~::MIRO Question Regarding Cryptocurrency Escrow Accounts Dear Mr. Asbell: Thank you for contacting the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). In your email, you ask for any guidance, references and recommendations regarding your question as to the use of cryptocurrency in escrow accounts. The SEC's role as a federal regulator prohibits us from providing legal guidance to members of the public. For this reason, we are unable to answer your specific questions. Questions about how the federal securities laws apply to particular circumstances should be addressed by consulting with a private securities lawyer. The SEC has created a spotlight section on its website to help address questions and concerns about the rising interest in initial coin offerings (ICOs) and other digital assets (see https://www.sec.gov/ICO). For links to SEC resources that are intended to help individuals better understand these complex topics, see https://www.investor.gov/additional-resources/spotlight/spotlight-initial-coin-offerings-and-digital-assets). Additionally, the SEC has launched a Strategic Hub for Innovation and Financial Technology (FinHub) which serves a resource for public engagement on the SEC's FinTech-related issues and initiatives. We recommend you visit the FinHub webpage at https://www.sec.gov/finhub. We encourage market participants who are employing new technologies to form investment vehicles or distribute investment opportunities to consult with legal counsel to aid in their analysis of federal securities law issues and to contact SEC staff, as needed, for assistance in analyzing the application of the federal securities laws. You may communicate directly with the SEC’s FinHub staff for any further assistance by submitting inquiries using the FinHub webform at https://www.sec.gov/finhub-form#no-back. In addition, we recommend that you contact the Commodities Futures Trading Commission (CFTC), which has jurisdiction over some virtual-currency related issues. You can contact the CFTC at: CFTC Three Lafayette Centre 1155 21st Street, NW Washington, DC 20581 Phone: 202-418-5000 Website: http://www.cftc.gov/index.htm Again, please note that questions about how the federal securities laws apply to particular circumstances, such as the issues you raise, should be addressed by consulting with a private securities lawyer. For your convenience, we have provided contact information for The American Bar Association, which is a national bar association that can provide you with attorney referrals in the U.S. We cannot endorse or recommend a specific lawyer to you, vouch for the competence of any lawyer recommended to you by a bar association or referral service, nor recommend the services of one bar association over another. American Bar Association 321 North Clark Street Chicago, IL 60610 Phone: (312) 988-5522 Toll free: (800) 285-2221 Fax: The American Bar Association will not refer you directly to an attorney. They will, however, provide you with the name, address, and phone number of a referral service in your area. This is a free service. In addition to the American Bar Association, the Florida State Bar offers an attorney referral service. You can access the website link at https://lrs.floridabar.org/ or call 800-342-8011. Sincerely, Trisha Sindler Fuchs Attorney Adviser U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission