Oklahoma Cryptocurrency Law: A New “Wild West?” Not So Fast…

Oklahoma has become a leading state for cryptocurrency businesses, and for good reason. We have a lot of rural land, cheap electric rates, and a Legislature committed to protecting this new industry from burdensome regulations.

The Legislature even created a new title of the Oklahoma Code largely for cryptocurrency laws.

Title 75A, entitled “Technology",” prohibits the state government, at any level, from prohibiting, restricting, or even just impairing a person’s right to use “digital assets” to purchase goods or services. It even immunizes digital assets from special taxation at the state or local level.

Moreover, cryptocurrency mining, either by an individual in their home or by a business, is expressly legal, exempt from licensing as a money transmitter, and even immunized from liability related to any cryptocurrency transaction simply for validating a transaction.

So while it might seem like the state has created another “wild wild west” in the cryptocurrency market (as many say we did with the medical marijuana market), there is an important provision in Title 75A that must be considered by anyone thinking of starting a cryptocurrency business in Oklahoma:

75A O.S. Section 104 says, “Nothing in this title restricts, impedes, limits, exempts, and/or excepts any person, entity, transaction, or conduct from the jurisdiction authorized in Title 71 of the Oklahoma Statutes to the Oklahoma Department of Securities.”

In other words, just because Title 75A is intended to make Oklahoma the most cryptocurrency-friendly state in the Union, the state agency with jurisdiction over securities, which includes “investment contracts,” still holds regulatory authority over a lot of cryptocurrency activity.

At the same time, the Securities Department, like the rest of Oklahoma’s government, is strongly pro-business. The agency can even provide written guidance on request so a business knows whether the particular cryptocurrency concept they’re considering will comply with Oklahoma law.

If you’re considering engaging in the Oklahoma cryptocurrency market, it’s critical you have strong legal counsel with experience guiding Oklahoma businesses through complicated regulatory procedures. That’s why you should reach out to Brian Ted Jones, PC today.