District Court says EFTA applies to cryptocurrency

Courts Digital Assets EFTA Cryptocurrency Class Action Privacy, Cyber Risk & Data Security State Issues New York CFPB Virtual Currency Fintech

On February 22, the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York partially granted a cryptocurrency exchange’s motion to dismiss allegations that its inadequate security practices allowed unauthorized users to drain customers’ cryptocurrency savings. Plaintiffs claimed the exchange and its former CEO (collectively, “defendants”) failed to correctly implement a two-factor authentication system for their accounts and misrepresented the scope of the exchange’s security protocols and responsiveness. Plaintiffs filed a putative class action alleging violations of the EFTA and New York General Business Law, along with claims of negligence, negligent misrepresentation, breach of contract, breach of warranty, and unjust enrichment. The defendants moved to dismiss, in part, by arguing that the EFTA claim failed because cryptocurrency does not constitute “funds” under the statute. The court denied the motion as to the plaintiffs’ EFTA claim, stating that the EFTA does not define the term “funds.” According to the court, the ordinary meaning of “cryptocurrency” is “a digital form of liquid, monetary assets” that can be used to pay for things or “used as a medium of exchange that is subsequently converted to currency to pay for things.” In allowing the claim to proceed, the court referred to a final rule issued by the CFPB in 2016, in which the agency, according to the court’s opinion, “expressly stated that it was taking no position with respect to the application of existing statutes, like the EFTA, to virtual currencies and services.” In the final rule, the Bureau stated that it “continues to analyze the nature of products or services tied to virtual currencies.” The court dismissed all of the remaining claims, citing various pleading deficiencies, and finding, among other things, that the “deceptive acts or practices” claim under New York law failed because plaintiffs did not identify specific deceptive statements the defendants made or deceptive omissions for which the defendants were responsible.