Louisiana Revised Statutes 6:1383 – A. Except as otherwise provided in Subsection B or C of this Section, the provisions of this Chapter govern the virtual currency business activity of a person, wherever located, who
Terms Used In Louisiana Revised Statutes 6:1383
- Control: when used in the context described, means the following:
(a) When used in reference to a transaction or relationship involving virtual currency, power to execute unilaterally or prevent indefinitely a virtual currency transaction. See Louisiana Revised Statutes 6:1382
- Escrow: Money given to a third party to be held for payment until certain conditions are met.
- Exchange: when used as a verb, means to assume control of virtual currency from, or on behalf of, a resident, at least momentarily, to sell, trade, or convert either of the following:
(a) Virtual currency for legal tender, bank credit, or one or more forms of virtual currency. See Louisiana Revised Statutes 6:1382
- Lien: A claim against real or personal property in satisfaction of a debt.
- Person: means an individual, general partnership, limited partnership, limited liability company, corporation, trust, association, joint stock corporation, or other legal entity, or any individual or group of individuals, however organized. See Louisiana Revised Statutes 6:1382
- Regulated financial institution: means a federally insured depository institution and its wholly owned subsidiaries chartered pursuant to the laws of this state, another state, or the United States, a Louisiana state-chartered trust company, a trust company chartered by another state, or a federally chartered trust company. See Louisiana Revised Statutes 6:1382
- Resident: means any of the following:
(i) A person who is domiciled in this state. See Louisiana Revised Statutes 6:1382
- Settlement: Parties to a lawsuit resolve their difference without having a trial. Settlements often involve the payment of compensation by one party in satisfaction of the other party's claims.
- State: means a state of the United States, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, the United States Virgin Islands, or any territory or insular possession subject to the jurisdiction of the United States. See Louisiana Revised Statutes 6:1382
- Transfer: means to assume control of virtual currency from, or on behalf of, a resident and do any of the following:
(a) Credit the virtual currency to the account of another person. See Louisiana Revised Statutes 6:1382
- Virtual currency: means a digital representation of value that is used as a medium of exchange, unit of account, or store of value, and that is not legal tender, whether or not denominated in legal tender. See Louisiana Revised Statutes 6:1382
- Virtual currency administration: means issuing virtual currency with the authority to redeem the currency for legal tender, bank credit, or other virtual currency. See Louisiana Revised Statutes 6:1382
- Virtual currency business activity: means any of the following:
(a) Exchanging, transferring, or storing virtual currency or engaging in virtual currency administration, whether directly or through an agreement with a virtual currency control services vendor. See Louisiana Revised Statutes 6:1382
- Virtual currency control services vendor: means a person that has control of virtual currency solely under an agreement with a person that, on behalf of another person, assumes control of virtual currency. See Louisiana Revised Statutes 6:1382
A. Except as otherwise provided in Subsection B or C of this Section, the provisions of this Chapter govern the virtual currency business activity of a person, wherever located, who engages in or holds itself out as engaging in the activity with, or on behalf of, a resident.
B. This Chapter shall not apply to the exchange, transfer, or storage of virtual currency or to virtual currency administration to the extent the activity is governed by any of the following federal or state laws:
(1) The Electronic Fund Transfer Act of 1978.
(2) The Securities Exchange Act of 1934.
(3) The Commodities Exchange Act of 1936.
(4) The Louisiana Securities Law, La. Rev. Stat. 51:701 et seq.
C. This Chapter shall not apply to activity by any of the following:
(1) The United States, a state, political subdivision of a state, agency, or instrumentality of federal, state, or local government, or a foreign government or a subdivision, department, agency, or instrumentality of a foreign government.
(2) A regulated financial institution.
(3) A person whose participation in a payment system is limited to providing processing, clearing, or performing settlement services solely for transactions between or among persons that are exempt from the licensing or registration requirements of this Chapter.
(4) A person engaged in the business of dealing in foreign exchange to the extent the person’s activity meets the definition in 31 C.F.R. § 1010.605(f)(1)(iv).
(5) A person who does any of the following:
(a) Contributes only connectivity software or computing power to a decentralized virtual currency or to a protocol governing transfer of the digital representation of value.
(b) 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.
(c) Repealed by Acts 2023, No. 331, §2, eff. June 13, 2023.
(6) 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 the person’s own behalf for personal, family, or household purposes or for academic purposes.
(7) Repealed by Acts 2023, No. 331, §2, eff. June 13, 2023.
(8) An attorney to the extent of providing escrow services to a resident.
(9) A title insurance company to the extent of providing escrow services to a resident.
(10) A securities intermediary, as defined in La. Rev. Stat. 10:8-102(a), or a commodity intermediary, as defined in La. Rev. Stat. 10:9-102(a), that does not engage in the ordinary course of business in virtual currency business activity with, or on behalf of, a resident, in addition to maintaining securities accounts or commodities accounts and is regulated as a securities intermediary or commodity intermediary pursuant to federal law, law of this state other than the provisions of this Chapter, or law of another state, and affords a resident protections comparable to those provided in La. Rev. Stat. 10:8-501 et seq.
(11) A secured creditor pursuant to La. Rev. Stat. 10:9-101 et seq. or a creditor with a judicial lien, or lien arising by operation of law, on collateral that is virtual currency, if the virtual currency business activity of the creditor is limited to enforcement of the security interest in compliance with La. Rev. Stat. 10:9-101 et seq. or lien in compliance with the law applicable to the lien.
(12) A virtual currency control services vendor.
(13) A person who does not receive compensation from a resident for providing virtual currency products or services or for conducting virtual currency business activity, or that is engaged in testing products or services with the person’s own funds.
D. Repealed by Acts 2023, No. 331, §2, eff. June 13, 2023.
Acts 2020, No. 341, §1; Acts 2023, No. 331, §2, eff. June 13, 2023.
NOTE: The provisions of Acts 2023, No. 331, will terminate on July 1, 2025.