Blockchain LLC

• Author: Jason Tashea
• Pages: 31-33

MARCH 2019 ABA JOURNAL || 31

Business of Law

PHOTO ILLUSTRATION BY SARA WADFORD, SHUTTERSTOCK

Wyoming likes being fi rst.

It was the fi rst government to gra nt su rage to women

(1869), the fi rst U.S. national park wa s established there

(Yellowstone, 1872), and the state Legislatu re was the fi rst

to create a limit ed liability corporation entity

( 1 9 7 7 ) .

Now, the Cowboy St ate is at it again. In

March 2018, then- Gov. Matt Mead signed into

law a series of bills, includi ng some legislative

fi r sts, to entice the blockchain industr y to the

country ’s least-populous state.

“In this era of rapid innovation, ma ny compa-

nies are developing products and idea s without

clear legal clar ity. Blockchain is among those

emerging industries w ith tremendous promise,” Mead’s o ce

said in an emailed s tatement in late 2018. “However, without

some regulatory g uidance, these companies operat e at risk.”

Wyoming isn’t alone. Vermont, the second-least populous

state, also t ook the plunge last year by betting big on block-

chain and creati ng favorable laws that attempt to clear up

legal ambiguity .

Over the last few yea rs, blockchain—also

referred to as d istributed ledger technology—

has caught the att ention of businesses, investors

and government regulat ors. A survey last year

from Juniper Research i n the United Kingdom

found that 65 percent of large fi rm s—those with

over 10,000 employees—were either consid-

ering or deploying a blockchain applic ation. A

recent study from a professor at Bost on College’s

Carroll School of Ma nagement found that since

January 2017, about 4,000 initial coin o er ings—fundrais-

ing mechanisms to suppor t the creation of blockchain proj-

ects—raised $12 bill ion.

EDITED BY VICTOR LI / VICTOR.LI@AMERICANBAR.ORG

BLOCKCHAIN LLC

Wyoming and Vermont relax regulations and pass favorable laws relating to blockchain,

hoping they can attract tech entrepreneurs By Jason Tashea

Former Gov. Matt Mead