The National Law Journal (NLJ) recognized Mark Rasmussen, a partner in Jones Day's Financial Markets Practice, by including him in its list of Cryptocurrency / Blockchain / Fintech Trailblazers for 2022. The NLJ business arm recognizes professionals who have moved the needle in the legal industry and made significant marks on the practice, policy, and technological advancements in their sector—those who are truly Trailblazers. Mr. Rasmussen has helped clients navigate several first-of-their kind matters in the blockchain industry.
Mr. Rasmussen's recent accomplishments in FinTech include securing a major victory for a manufacturer of cryptocurrency mining equipment and its affiliates in the first civil antitrust case arising out of a hard fork of a blockchain network. In addition, he was the first-ever lawyer recommended by the SEC and appointed by a court to serve as a receiver of a cryptocurrency company. Acting as a neutral, third-party receiver appointed by Chief Judge Barbara Lynn of the United States District Court for the Northern District of Texas in an SEC enforcement action, Mr. Rasmussen was responsible for overseeing the assets of a company called AriseBank, which fraudulently raised cryptocurrency funds in an initial count offering. He created a custom-made claims process to receive claims of the harmed investors. After validating the claims, he returned bitcoin, ether, litecoin, doge, and other cryptocurrencies and cash to more than 200 harmed investors, which made all claimants one hundred percent whole. Mr. Rasmussen also advised a digital sports entertainment and gaming company in all legal and regulatory matters related to its development and release, in 2021, of a new business line—an NFT marketplace focused on sports and entertainment NFT collectibles. He also helped negotiate a landmark licensing agreement to launch gamified NFTs of NFL players to be integrated into the company's fantasy sports contests. He also helped negotiate and draft several other contracts with services providers and counterparties that were integral to the development of the NFT marketplace.
Mr. Rasmussen is co-author of Blockchain for Business Lawyers published by the American Bar Association in 2018. He is currently working on a second edition.
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