Block & Order Weekly Docket (December 7, 2025)

Dec 07, 2025

Beeple Taking over Miami, Courtesy of Nano Banana Pro 3

 

Your weekly briefing on crypto, AI, and emerging technology legal developments. We’re moving to a Sunday publication schedule and have a couple amazing interviews in the pipeline.

In This Issue:

  • Beeple takes over Miami
  • Connecticut’s prediction market crackdown and Kalshi’s legal counterattack
  • USPTO provides AI inventorship guidance
  • A metaverse real estate fund lawsuit

🎯 Prediction Markets Under Fire

  • Connecticut orders Kalshi, Robinhood, and Crypto.com to halt sports betting contracts. The state’s Department of Consumer Protection issued cease-and-desist orders alleging the platforms operate unlicensed online gambling, citing risks including lack of consumer protections and potential exposure to minors. Only state-licensed operators like DraftKings and FanDuel may offer such services in Connecticut. [CoinDesk] [CT Press Release]
  • Kalshi fires back with federal preemption lawsuit. Kalshi returned fire by filing suit in Connecticut state court, arguing that federal commodity oversight preempts state gambling authority and that the enforcement action exceeds the department’s jurisdiction. [Law360] [Complaint]

🌍 International Crypto Policy

  • UK formally recognizes crypto as a third category of property. The Property (Digital Assets etc.) Act 2025 received Royal Assent, establishing digital assets as distinct from traditional tangible property or contractual rights under English law. The legislation clarifies protections for ownership, recovery of stolen holdings, and treatment in insolvency or estate proceedings. [The Block]
  • Poland’s president vetoes MiCA implementation bill. President Karol Nawrocki blocked the Crypto-Asset Market Act, citing excessive regulatory burdens including website-blocking provisions and complex rules that could drive businesses to neighboring EU states. The veto highlights tension between national implementation and the EU-wide MiCA framework effective July 2026. [Cointelegraph]
  • Cayman Islands Web3 foundations surge 70% amid new CARF reporting rules. Registrations have exceeded 1,300 as DAOs seek liability-shielding legal wrappers following the Samuels v. Lido DAO ruling. New OECD-aligned reporting obligations take effect January 2026, though passive structures (like protocol treasuries) may be exempt. [Cointelegraph]

🏛️ U.S. Regulatory Developments

  • FINRA scrutinizing 200+ companies with digital asset treasuries. Coordinated inquiries focus on compliance and risk management practices for public companies holding substantial crypto, signaling heightened disclosure and oversight expectations. [Law360]
  • House Republicans confirm “Operation Choke Point 2.0.” A 50-page report documents a debanking campaign which targeted crypto firms through informal tactics like “pause letters” rather than formal enforcement. The Fed, FDIC, and OCC allegedly pressured banks to sever ties with at least 30 digital-asset entities. [Bitcoin Magazine] [Final Staff Report]
  • FDIC to propose GENIUS Act implementation framework this month. Acting Chair Travis Hill outlined plans to license and oversee stablecoin-issuing subsidiaries of FDIC-insured institutions, including capital, liquidity, and reserve requirements. Full prudential rules are expected early next year. [The Block]
  • Investors appeal to revive Ripple securities lawsuit. Plaintiffs asked the Ninth Circuit to reverse summary judgment for Ripple Labs, arguing the lower court misapplied the three-year statute of repose under SEC v. Murphy. The outcome could create appellate clarity over XRP’s securities status and disclosure obligations. [Law360]

🤖 AI Law & Policy

  • USPTO issues revised inventorship guidance for AI-assisted inventions. The guidance reaffirms that only natural persons can be inventors, treating AI systems as tools regardless of sophistication. The statement provides new guidance and withdraws application of the Pannu factors (which only apply when determining whether multiple natural persons qualify as joint inventors). [Federal Register]
  • TTAB affirms “MUSIC.AI” is merely descriptive. The Board rejected trademark registration for AI-infused marks where both components (MUSIC and AI) are descriptive of the goods, highlighting risks for trademarking AI-related brands without clear distinctiveness. [TTABlog] [TTAB Opinion]
  • New York Times sues Perplexity for “verbatim” copying. The lawsuit alleges the AI search startup reproduced protected content without authorization, adding to growing copyright litigation against generative AI companies. [The Verge] [Complaint]
  • Cass Sunstein on First Amendment implications for AI. On the Conversations with Tyler podcast, Cass Sunstein explained to Tyler Cowen that AI tools should be treated as speech conduits and that users’ rights to receive information should be protected even if AI systems lack rights themselves. [Conversations with Tyler]
  • Florida governor proposes AI “Bill of Rights” amid federal preemption push. Governor DeSantis seeks to protect residents from unauthorized data uses and chatbot harms to minors, even as the incoming administration and Congressional Republicans pursue federal legislation to preempt state AI regulations. [Law360]

📊 Deals, Enforcement & Market Activity

  • Crypto M&A hits all-time high at $8.6 billion. The 133 deals in 2025 surpassed the prior four years combined, led by Coinbase’s $2.9B Deribit acquisition, Ripple’s $1.25B Hidden Road purchase, and Kraken’s acquisition of Backed Finance. The surge reflects the continuing U.S. regulatory thaw. [Bloomberg]
  • Europol dismantles Cryptomixer in €1.3B Bitcoin laundering crackdown. Swiss and German authorities seized servers, the domain, €25M in bitcoin, and 12TB of data from the mixing service used by ransomware operators and darknet markets since 2016. [Bitcoin Magazine]
  • Coinbase law enforcement requests surge 19%. The exchange’s 2025 transparency report shows 12,716 global requests, with 53% originating outside the U.S.—primarily from Germany, UK, France, Spain, and Australia—underscoring intensifying cross-border regulatory scrutiny. [Cointelegraph] [Coinbase Transparency Report]

🎨The (not ded) NFT Corner

  • Beeple debuts NFT-integrated robotic sculptures at Art Basel Miami. The installation merges AI powered robots with NFTs (with an actual explanation of the art found in the article). [The Art Newspaper]
  • Metaverse real estate fund sues game developer over alleged NFT fraud. In a delicious development, Realm Metaverse Real Estate fund has filed a complaint against Neon Machine for their alleged securities law violations and breach of contract due to their failure to deliver VIP Land Periphery real estate NFTs tied to an unreleased video game. Realm argues that Neon was required yet failed to register their NFT issuance with the SEC. [Law360] [Complaint]

Block & Order Weekly Docket is curated for in-house counsel, compliance professionals, and legal practitioners navigating digital assets and emerging technology. The materials in this article are for informational purposes only and are not legal advice. Do not act upon this information without first seeking advice from an attorney licensed in your jurisdiction.