Lilya Tessler

LILYA TESSLER leads Sidley’s global FinTech and Blockchain group and is widely recognized for her strong industry advocacy, leadership, and legal innovation in the digital asset space. Ranked Band 1 by Chambers FinTech for Blockchain & Cryptocurrencies, Lilya advises digital asset trading platforms, blockchain and AI technology companies, U.S. and non-U.S. broker-dealers, financial institutions, and cryptocurrency funds. Her practice spans a broad range of matters, including the tokenization of real-world assets and other cutting-edge applications of blockchain technology. Known for her clarity in navigating complex legal and technical topics, she is frequently invited to speak on emerging technologies and has testified before both federal and state government bodies. Lilya serves on the Advisory Board of The Digital Chamber, which describes her as a “distinguished leader” and “industry visionary,” and she co-chairs its Token Alliance Leadership Committee.

In the 2025 edition of Chambers FinTech, clients are impressed by Lilya’s “fantastic insight not only into legal issues but also market trends…very pragmatic approach to solving problems…[how] she really understands discussions about the tech and how that drives different conclusions from a regulatory perspective.” She has also been ranked by Chambers FinTech for her work in Crypto-Asset Disputes (2024–2026); in this same edition, Sidley’s FinTech and Blockchain group is recognized as a Band 1 practice overall. The practice was also named a “FinTech Practice Group of the Year” by Law360 in 2020.  

Lilya advises technology companies and investment firms on tokenization, public and private securities offerings, and blockchain token sales. She also counsels financial institutions and digital asset exchanges with day-to-day securities issues, custody rule requirements, cross-border regulatory issues, money services business registration requirements, as well as FINRA and SEC regulatory inquiries. She advises several U.S. and non-U.S. FinTech companies, including robo-advisors and high-frequency trading firms in evaluating the broker-dealer and investment adviser registration requirements. She regularly advises clients in SEC and CFTC investigations and litigations that relate to complex digital asset legal and regulatory issues.

Lilya is a member of Sidley’s global Securities Enforcement and Regulatory practice, which was named a Law360 “Compliance Firm of the Year” in 2024 and a “Law Firm of the Year” for Securities Regulation in 2024 by U.S. News — Best Lawyers. She works with transactional lawyers on structuring deals involving financial services and technology companies, digital asset exchanges, and blockchain token offerings. She regularly assists both financial services firms and their vendors in negotiating U.S. and cross-border technology agreements for all types of services and considering the U.S. securities laws and broker-dealer regulatory issues associated with such technologies. Her recent work has extended to advising how issues related to digital assets could play out in the context of bankruptcy proceedings and enforcement matters.

Lilya is a frequent speaker and writer on various topics in FinTech, with a particular focus on distributed ledger technology, blockchain tokens, and digital asset trading platforms. In June 2024, Lilya testified before the U.S. House Financial Services Committee’s Subcommittee on Digital Assets, Financial Technology, and Inclusion, on “Next Generation Infrastructure: How Tokenization of Real-World Assets Will Facilitate Efficient Markets.” Lilya is also the founder and co-chair of the Digital Asset Regulatory and Legal Alliance (DARLA), an industry working group consisting of general counsel and chief compliance officers of prominent blockchain and digital asset businesses.

Prior to joining Sidley, Lilya was co-head of the FinTech and Blockchain Group and a leader of the broker-dealer practice at another global law firm. Lilya was a certified public accountant, FINRA dispute resolution arbitrator, and previously held FINRA Series 7 and 24 licenses.

Awards

• Chambers FinTech, USA FinTech Legal: Blockchain & Cryptocurrencies (2020–2026), including a Band 1 ranking since 2022
• Chambers FinTech, USA Crypto-Asset Disputes (2024–2026) 
• The Texas Lawyer, Texas Legal Awards, “Rising Star” (2023)
• Law360, Fintech “MVP” (2022) and Fintech “Rising Star” (2019) 

Transactions Experience

• Solana Foundation in connection with Ellipsis Labs’ launch of Phoenix Perpetuals on the Solana blockchain.
• Solana Foundation in connection with its collaboration with J.P. Morgan in its role as arranger of its landmark U.S. commercial paper issuance on the Solana Public Blockchain. Galaxy Digital Holdings LP, an affiliate of Galaxy Inc. on Solana was the issuer, Galaxy Digital Partners LLC, acted as Structuring Agent on the transaction, and Coinbase Global Inc. and Franklin Templeton were the purchasers. The transaction is one of the earliest debt issuances ever executed on a public blockchain, and among the first in the U.S. to harness blockchain for the issuance and servicing of securities.
• Solana Foundation in connection with its collaboration with Bullish. Bullish received US$1.15 billion in stablecoin proceeds from its initial public offering—marking a landmark transaction for the use of stablecoins in a U.S. IPO. The vast majority of the stablecoins were minted on the Solana network.
• Solana Foundation in connection with a token sale transaction to SOL Strategies, a NASDAQ-listed, Canadian investment company, in support of its Digital Asset Treasury Strategy.
• Solana Foundation in connection with a US$50 million token sale transaction, following an oversubscribed US$300 million PIPE, to Solmate, formally Brera Holdings PLC’s, a Solana-based digital asset treasury and crypto infrastructure company listed on NASDAQ and based in Abu Dabhi.
• Solana Foundation in connection with tokenization of real world assets.
• Avalanche Foundation on strategic transaction in US$675 million digital asset treasury company with Avalanche Treasury Co. and Mountain Lake Acquisition Corp.
• Goldman Sachs in Its Launch of tokenized money market funds solution.
• Avalanche Foundation concerning the disposition of AVAX tokens in connection with Terraform Labs bankruptcy plan.
• Mattereum, a UK platform enabling tokenization of real world assets, in its first U.S. token issuance.
• Issuers in global offerings of digital securities, stablecoins, digital assets and asset-backed blockchain tokens.
• Cboe Global Markets, Inc. in its acquisition of Eris Digital Holdings, LLC, an operator of a U.S.-based digital asset spot market, a regulated futures exchange and a regulated clearing house.
• An American multinational investment bank and financial services holding company in the launch of its first bitcoin fund with NYDIG acting as a custodian.
• Argo Blockchain, the only cryptocurrency mining company listed on the London Stock Exchange, in connection with its SEC-registered IPO offering and concurrent Nasdaq listing.
• Riot Blockchain, Inc. in its acquisition of Whinstone U.S., which operates the largest bitcoin mining hosting facility in North America.
• TradeUP Global Corporation, a publicly trade SPAC, in a de-SPAC transaction with SAITECH Limited, a Eurasia-based energy saving bitcoin mining operator.
• Amalgamated Token Services, an affiliate of AngelList, in connection with the acquisition of EC Securities, LLC, a private placement broker-dealer, approved by FINRA to act as placement agent for SAFTs and other blockchain-based securities.
• SolidX Management LLC in connection with a first of its kind offering of shares of VanEck SolidX Bitcoin Trust, a physically-backed bitcoin product that will trade in the secondary market exclusively among QIBs pursuant to Rule 144A.
• Paxos Trust Company in connection with the launch of PAX Gold, a first-of-its-kind crypto-asset redeemable for physical gold.
• Helium, developer of a decentralized wireless network, on its Series C financing with Multicoin Capital, Union Square Ventures and other investors, along with advising the company on regulatory aspects of its blockchain network.
• Prominent venture capital firms, including Pantera Capital and CMT Digital, with respect to early-stage investments in blockchain companies.
• BlockTower Capital, a leading blockchain investment firm, with respect to fund formation, regulatory matters, and venture investments.
• Technology company in acquisition of a private placement broker-dealer, including facilitating regulatory approvals with FINRA and the SEC.
• Negotiate node agreements and conduct due diligence for strategic partnerships with blockchain technology companies.
• Coinbase in acquisition of Keystone Capital Corp., Venovate Marketplace, Inc. and Digital Wealth LLC, an SEC-registered broker-dealer, alternative trading system and registered investment adviser.
• Coinbase in acquisition of Paradex, a blockchain token wallet-to-wallet relayer platform.
• Polychain Capital in certain aspects of its blockchain token purchases.
• Block.one in the sale of blockchain tokens for EOS.
• Citizens Financial Group in its acquisition of Western Reserve Partners, a merger and acquisition advisory firm.

Regulatory Experience

• IEX Group on regulatory matters in connection with a strategic investment by a U.S. regulated cryptocurrency exchange.
• Oasis Pro Markets LLC related to U.S. regulatory requirements for its Digital Security Alternative Trading System (ATS).
• INX Limited, a cryptocurrency exchange that went public on Ethereum in 2020 and issuer of the first registered security token, on broker-dealer and blockchain matters related to the integration of its acquisition of Openfinance Securities, a U.S. broker-dealer.
• One of the world’s leading cryptocurrency exchanges on a comprehensive review of its U.S. compliance posture, including registration and licensing matters.
• Securities and Financial Industry Markets Association (SIFMA) in connection with a response letter to the SEC in connection with advocacy for more regulatory guidance on custody of digital asset securities.
• An international regulatory agency on U.S. regulatory considerations in the release of digital asset regulatory guidance.
• Apex Clearing Holdings LLC on the regulatory implications of its cryptocurrency trading and custody services in the context of a proposed business combination with Northern Star Investment Corp. II, a publicly traded SPAC.
• Block.one related to U.S. regulatory requirements for the launch of Voice, a global social media platform.
• Various private securities broker-dealers and marketplaces, including SharesPost and Templum, Inc., with respect to broker-dealer and blockchain regulatory issues.
• World Gold Council on FinTech and blockchain strategic initiatives and regulatory developments.
• CoinList on legal questions concerning digital asset offerings and U.S. federal securities laws.
• Dharma Labs on various regulatory issues related to the development and implementation of smart contracts for lending products.
• Formation of broker-dealers and registration of alternative trading systems to transact or custody digital assets.
• Block.one in various corporate, intellectual property and regulatory issues.
• Coinbase on various legal questions concerning blockchain tokens and broker-dealer rules.
• Financial institutions with day-to-day securities issues, private placement agent requirements, Rule 15a-6 questions and interpretation of the M&A Broker no-action letter, as well as policies and procedures to implement the advice.
• Negotiated trading and custody agreements for broker-dealers, banks and other financial services companies.
• Retail broker-dealers and private funds on the requirements of Regulation R, Regulation U and Regulation T.
• The Argon Group on various regulatory issues relating to blockchain token sales.

Legislative and Regulatory Advocacy

• Testified before the U.S. House Financial Services Committee’s Subcommittee on Digital Assets, Financial Technology and Inclusion, on “Next Generation Infrastructure: How Tokenization of Real-World Assets Will Facilitate Efficient Markets” on June 5, 2024.
• The Digital Chamber and drafted its amicus brief in the SEC v. Payward, Inc. (Kraken) case filed in (NDCal) concerning the SEC's approach to regulating digital assets and its potential negative impact on innovation in the blockchain sector.
• The Digital Chamber in filing its first amicus brief in the SEC v. Telegram (SDNY) case that sets forth the legal framework in applying the federal securities laws to digital assets.
• Participate in Venture Capital Working Group, led by Andreessen Horowitz, with respect to legislative and SEC regulatory initiatives related to digital assets.
• Prepared for the SEC a proposal to address open questions related to broker-dealer custody of digital assets under the SEC’s Customer Protection Rule.
• Participated in the Legislating Certainty for Cryptocurrencies Roundtable hosted by Congressman Warren Davidson.
• Testified before the New Jersey Assembly Science, Innovation and Technology Committee on the economic development opportunities presented by blockchain technology innovation.
• A U.S. industry trade group with respect to a comment letter to shorten the settlement cycle in the United States to T+2.
• The Financial Services Roundtable with respect to a comment letter on the consolidated audit trail (CAT) plan and proposed U.S. Treasury regulations.

Some of the above matters were handled prior to joining Sidley.

• Member, International Jurisdiction Taskforce (2025)
• Member, Advisory Board, The Digital Chamber (2025)
• Co-chair, Token Alliance Leadership Committee, The Digital Chamber
• Member, Senior Steering Committee concerning “Proposed Information Guidelines for Certain Tokens Made Available in the United States,” Global Digital Asset & Cryptocurrency Association
• Northwestern University Kellogg School of Management, Executive Leadership Program Certification, 2025