DAO: challenges from a legal and tax perspective - Dr. Luka Mueller, Partner MME

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UPDATE: THE DAO ATTACK & ITS LEGAL IMPLICATIONS

The topic of our meetup has just become hotter: as many of you probably know already, THE DAO has been attacked by a malicious exploit, which drained more than USD 50m worth of ether from the funds invested into THE DAO.

In his presentation, Luka will discuss the legal implications of this exploit (additional to the other points mentioned below).

Join us, or tune into the live stream to get first-hand insights into the legal aspects of this huge case.

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Dear all,

Topic of this meetup are the Legal Context and the resulting Tax Implications of DAOs (Decentralized Autonomous Organizations), both very important (but often overlooked) aspects when it comes to successfully implementing such structures.

The topic is highly relevant, as we just saw the "The DAO" becoming the most successful crowd funding campaign in history, with funds raised that exceed 150m USD.

"The DAO" is the first truly "decentralized venture fund". It is based on the Ethereum blockchain, with backers who are potentially anonymous and distributed globally across many jurisdictions. The anonymous (or pseudonymous) participation of individuals distributed globally opens up a multitude of interesting questions when it comes to distributing the income of the DAO and the use of the funds by DAO projects from a legal and tax perspective.

A structure like THE DAO has not been foreseen by regulators and law makers yet. Still, they will require that it adheres to existing rules and regulations.
Thus, it is highly important that developers and entrepreneurs applying to the DAO and/or setting up their own DAO or similar funding realize the potential legal- and tax implications of their design decisions early in the process to avoid unpleasant surprises.

For example, the very nature of DAO pay-outs payments to backers is not fully clear. Are they dividends? So how to proceed with withholding tax if the receiver opts to remain anonymous? Or should the DAO opt to pay VAT? Why should a DAO pay taxes at all?

I am very pleased to welcome Dr. Luka Mueller, partner at MME in Zug, as our guest for the meetup.
He is globally one of the foremost legal experts in the field of digital currencies and blockchain. He was involved in the Ether pre-sale, he is a member of the FINMA think tank on the topic and he's the legal counsel of several decentralized application projects and DAO proposals.

In the first part of the evening, he will share his thoughts about the topic.
After his presentation, we will hold an open discussion. Challenging views and critical input welcome!

Again, the event will be hosted by Peter Schnuerer of Inventx. Thank you very much indeed, Peter :)

Door opening is at 7:30pm, the presentation will start at 8:00pm.