The Vermont Statutes Online

Title 8 : Banking and Insurance

Chapter 079 : Money Services

Subchapter 010 : VIRTUAL CURRENCY

• § 2572. Exemptions

  (a) This subchapter shall not apply to the exchange or transfer of virtual currency, or to virtual-currency storage or virtual-currency administration, by a person to the extent that the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, 15 U.S.C. §§ 78a–78oo, as may be amended, or the Commodities Exchange Act of 1936, 7 U.S.C. §§ 1–27f, as may be amended, govern such activity and the person is conducting such activity in compliance with all applicable requirements of such laws and any regulations promulgated thereunder.

  (b) This subchapter shall not apply to activity by:

  (1) a person that:

  (A) provides only data storage or security services for a business engaged in virtual-currency business activity and does not otherwise engage in virtual-currency business activity on behalf of another person; or

  (B) provides only to a person otherwise exempt from this chapter virtual currency as one or more enterprise solutions used solely among each other and has no agreement or relationship with a person that is an end-user of virtual currency;

  (2) a person using virtual currency, including creating, investing, buying or selling, or obtaining virtual currency as payment for the purchase or sale of goods or services, solely on its own behalf for personal, family, or household purposes or for academic purposes;

  (3) a person whose virtual-currency business activity with or on behalf of persons is reasonably expected to be valued, in the aggregate, on an annual basis at $5,000.00 or less, measured by the U.S. dollar equivalent of virtual currency;

  (4) a securities intermediary, as defined in 9A V.S.A. § 8-102, or a commodity intermediary, as defined in 9A V.S.A. § 9-102, that:

  (A) does not engage in the ordinary course of business in virtual-currency business activity with or on behalf of a person in addition to maintaining securities accounts or commodities accounts and is regulated as a securities intermediary or commodity intermediary under federal law, law of this State other than this chapter, or law of another state; and

  (B) affords a person protections comparable to those set forth in section 2575 of this subchapter;

  (5) a person that is engaged in testing products or services with the person’s own funds.

  (c) The Commissioner may determine that other persons or classes of persons, given facts particular to the person or class, are exempt from this chapter, when the person or class is covered by requirements imposed under federal law on business engaged in money services and the Commissioner determines that no additional requirements are necessary to ensure the protection of the public. (Added 2023, No. 110 (Adj. Sess.), § 48, eff. July 1, 2024.)