Floating Liens Over Crypto-in-Commerce

24 Pages Posted: 25 Apr 2023 Last revised: 29 Oct 2024

See all articles by Christopher K. Odinet

Christopher K. Odinet

Texas A&M University School of Law

Andrea Tosato

Southern Methodist University - Dedman School of Law

Date Written: May 22, 2023

Abstract

Commercial law and crypto are colliding. Against the backdrop of explosive growth (and discord) in the digital asset market, there has been a series of recent revisions to American commercial law aimed at addressing new and emerging technologies. These changes to the Uniform Commercial Code (UCC) are designed to facilitate the buying and selling of digital assets as well as their use as collateral. However, to date, the literature exploring these changes has mainly focused on understanding the basics of the new regime. This Essay moves beyond that baseline by showing how the UCC amendments can be used to structure more complex secured credit arrangements that tap into the borrowed capital potential of blockchain technology. Specifically, this study explains how these recent law reforms—in concert with the inherent capabilities of distributed ledgers, smart contracts, and cryptography—can be used to create a floating lien (the quintessential financing device in American commercial law) over crypto inventory.

Keywords: crypto, blockchain, UCC, uniform commercial code, bitcoin, tokens, DLT, inventory financing, secured transactions, secured credit, commercial law, NFTs, floating liens, floating charges, Article 12, controllable electronic records

Suggested Citation

Odinet, Christopher K. and Tosato, Andrea, Floating Liens Over Crypto-in-Commerce (May 22, 2023). Indiana Law Journal, Vol. 99, No. 1, pp. 367-90, 2023, U Iowa Legal Studies Research Paper No. 2023-17, Texas A&M University School of Law Legal Studies Research Paper No. 24-65, Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=4424022

Christopher K. Odinet (Contact Author)

Texas A&M University School of Law ( email )

1515 Commerce St.
Fort Worth, TX Tarrant County 76102
United States

Andrea Tosato

Southern Methodist University - Dedman School of Law ( email )

P.O. Box 750116
Dallas, TX 75275
United States

HOME PAGE: http://www.smu.edu/law/faculty/profiles/tosato-andrea

Do you have a job opening that you would like to promote on SSRN?

Paper statistics

Downloads
467
Abstract Views
1,064
Rank
131,988
PlumX Metrics