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The Dilemma of Moore v. United States
Moore v. United States launched a frontal, direct attack on the “constitutionality” of federal government’s taxation of “unrealized,” undistributed foreign corporate earnings imposed under TCJA Code § 965, namely, “Mandatory Repatriation Tax” (MRT). The “Mandatory Repatriation Tax” is a legislative compromise, a one-time revenue raising Code provision to partially fund the transition to “territorial” international…
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SEC v. Binance—Battle of The Crypto Giants
The most recent, 13-counts enforcement case of SEC v. Binance Holdings Limited, et al. seems poised to slay the largest crypto dragon on earth, except, standing in the way, there are a few jurisdictional and technical hurdles/challenges. First is the jurisdictional question of extraterritoriality application of US securities law, or lack thereof. Binance is an off-shore, foreign,…
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Crypto Exchanges’ New Friend–Bankruptcy Code
By design or happenstance, giant crypto exchange Celsius, holding $3.8 billion worth of crypto assets and deposits and $6.7 billion liabilities, filed for US bankruptcy court relief under Bankruptcy Code, Chapter 11, rather than Chapter 7 or liquidation under the Securities Investor Protection Act of 1970 (“SIPA”). The procedural and economic advantage of filing under…
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OECD Pillar Two-Global Minimum Tax & US Tax Reform
OECD Statement on Two-Pillar Solution to Address the Tax Challenges Arising from the Digitalization of the Economy, issued on October 8, 2021, updates and finalizes a political statement by 136 OECD member countries of the Inclusive Framework (IF) to fundamentally reform international taxation. Pillar One attempts to ensure a fairer distribution of profits and taxing…
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Seeking Better Tax Treatment on Litigation Funding
In the past decade, the nascent litigation funding entrepreneurs entered with an appealing nomenclature of offering to litigation parties and attorneys “non-recourse loan:” namely, the funding loan needs not be repaid if the underlying litigation produces no monetary recovery or proceeds. On the obligation to repay, a typical non-recourse provision reads: If the claimant does…
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Cryptocurrencies—Are They Oranges or Securities?
In the “crypto case of the century,” SEC v. Ripple Labs, Inc. et al. securities law litigation (SDNY 20-CV-10832), parties lock horns on the question if defendent, Ripple Labs’ cryptocurrency, XRP is a “security” (or, should the court sidestep the question, if XRP offer and sale agreements and scheme, viewed together, an unregistered, un-exempt securities…
Law Office of Frank Xu 