Wyoming

Wyoming wants to become the Delaware of DAOs with new crypto law for decentralized autonomous organizations

Published

2 years ago

March 8, 2024

Wyoming wants to become the Delaware of DAOs with new crypto law for decentralized autonomous organizations

On Thursday, Wyoming’s Republican governor, Mark Gordon, signed into law the Decentralized Unincorporated Nonprofit Association Act, a landmark bill that establishes a framework for recognizing DAOs as legal entities.

Wyoming has long positioned itself as the friendliest state toward the crypto industry—not unlike Delaware’s attitude toward corporations—and the new law is the latest in a series of measures to attract blockchain firms to the Cowboy State. With support from a16z crypto, the legislation tackles one of the thorniest legal issues in the nascent sector: how to fit decentralized organizations into existing financial regulation.

In an exclusive interview with Fortune, state Sen. Chris Rothfuss, a Democrat and cochair of the Select Committee on Blockchain that sponsored the bill, said the measure reinforces Wyoming’s nation-leading approach to digital asset regulation as the federal government remains gridlocked.

“This DUNA legislation is just the most recent puzzle piece,” he said. “We wanted to make sure that we had the flexibility to figure out what the best practices and policies and use cases were in a legislature that was actually capable of being responsive and adaptive.”

The DAO problem

Decentralized autonomous organizations, or DAOs, are a unique structure born from the blockchain industry. Rather than deploying a traditional corporate structure, with a board of directors responsible for investors’ fiduciary interests, DAOs are composed of community members who vote on how to manage an organization, generally through holding governance tokens that are native to the group.

The concept may seem esoteric, but there have been high-profile instances in the past few years, including ConstitutionDAO, where people banded together in an attempt to buy one of the last remaining copies of the U.S. Constitution.

The novel structure has also created legal headaches for both crypto acolytes and regulators, most notably in an enforcement action by the Commodity Futures Trading Commission against Ooki DAO, which the agency charged with operating an illegal trading platform. In an unprecedented step, the CFTC held every token holder liable for the actions of the organization and served its members via a help chat box on the organization’s website.

“It is possible that DAOs are just the worst of all worlds: Their tokens are similar enough to corporate shares to be subject to securities laws, but different enough to create unlimited liability for their holders,” Bloomberg’s Matt Levine wrote at the time.

As Rothfuss told Fortune, Wyoming has a history of creating new rules around corporate structures, including becoming the first state to adopt the limited liability corporation, or LLC. Among its crypto initiatives, Wyoming also created a digital asset-focused banking charter called the Special Purpose Depository Institution, which took on national prominence after one charter holder, the Caitlin Long-led Custodia Bank, sued the Federal Reserve over being denied a master account.

Wyoming attempted to address DAO supervision previously with a 2021 law that created an LLC structure for the decentralized organizations. In an interview with Fortune, a16z crypto general counsel Miles Jennings explained that the framework created potential complications under securities laws, because the membership interests in LLCs—tokens, in this case—are generally considered securities. Furthermore, the Corporate Transparency Act, passed by Congress in 2021, required LLCs to report ownership—an impossibility for DAOs, some of which have hundreds of thousands of members scattered across the world. The 2021 legislation ultimately failed to attract DAOs to Wyoming.

DUNA

Instead of structuring DAOs as LLCs, the new law uses the model of unincorporated nonprofit associations, which means its purpose is not to generate profits for its owners—although it can still generate revenue and compensate DAO members.

Jennings explained why the new structure is necessary: It gives DAOs legal existence, it enables them to contract with third parties and appear in court, and it enables them to pay taxes and have limited liability from the actions of other members.

The structure would not prevent regulatory enforcement if DAOs break the law. Instead, it would allow the DAO to hire legal counsel and appear in court, and it would mean that every voting member of the organization wouldn’t necessarily be liable for the DAO’s actions—like how Enron shareholders weren’t held liable for fraud.

Jennings described DUNA as a “boon” for the government, as it would bring DAOs into the existing tax framework and generate revenue. The law attempts to circumvent the pesky question of whether crypto tokens should be considered securities, with DAOs having no directors, officers, or mission to maximize profits. Still, Jennings admitted that the structure may not escape the attention of the Securities and Exchange Commission, which has attempted to establish oversight over the vast majority of crypto assets.

The biggest challenge for Wyoming may be convincing existing DAOs—many of which reflect the “degen” spirit of rebellion endemic to the crypto industry—to adopt the new structure. Jennings said a16z crypto plans to work with portfolio companies on doing so and make it a condition for future investments.

“Some within the industry think that if you don’t subject yourself to the regulatory regime of a given jurisdiction that you’re somehow not subject to it,” Jennings told Fortune. “By doing that, you’re actually subjecting yourself to all jurisdictions.”

“If you want to provide for yourself all the legal protections that exist, for ordinary businesses, this is a much better way to achieving that,” he added.

Subscribe to Fortune Crypto to get daily updates on the coins, companies, and people shaping the world of crypto. Sign up for the newsletter for free.

Source link

Related Topics:Blockchain cryptocurrency Featured

Click to comment

Wyoming

Cowboys out-shoot Cal State Fullerton for 92-82 home win Saturday

Published

8 hours ago

November 9, 2025

Press Room

Cowboys out-shoot Cal State Fullerton for 92-82 home win Saturday

LARAMIE, Wyo. — The University of Wyoming Men’s Basketball team advances to 2-0 after besting Cal State Fullerton 92-82 Saturday. The Pokes and the Titans shot at a near identical efficiency from the field, but it was the three ball that gave Wyoming the upper hand.

The Pokes and the Titans shot 44% and 43% from the field, respectively. While the Pokes were much less efficient than the Titans from the charity stripe, Wyoming balled out from three. There, they shot 38% as a team, while Cal State Fullerton shot just 18%.

Wyoming’s Naz Meyer continues to prove he belongs, as he led the Pokes in scoring and was second on the team with rebounds with 18 and 5. Guard Demarion Dennis was close behind with 16. Khaden Bennet rounds out the list of Pokes scoring in double digits with 15.

“So many good things that we did tonight and tip of the cap to Fullerton, as they came ready to play,” Wyoming Head Coach Sundance Wicks told UW Athletics post-game. “We have to keep proving we will be a hard team to play against. They got us in transition, and their pace had us on our heels in the first half. But we won the Possession game by 10 and that’s winning basketball.”

Leland Walker versus Cal State Fullerton Nov. 8, 2025 (Garrett Grochowski, Oil City News)

Leland Walker, who joins Wyoming from Florida Atlantic, shared the wealth with a team-high six assists. All in all, all but two Pokes got points on the board for Wyoming.

The Titans jumped to an early 5-0 lead as the game began, keeping the Cowboys without any field goals for the first three minutes. It was a layup from Walker that got the Pokes their first bucket of the afternoon.

Dennis fueled the Pokes offense while they crawled their way back up to even with the Titans, finally tying the game 7-7 just under the 16-minute mark in the half. Titans Joshua Ward and Jaden Henderson kept the score close until Wyoming jumped to a game-high 10-point lead with 7:53 left in the half.

It was ultimately Wyoming’s three-point game that gave them the advantage, especially in the second half. In the first, the Pokes were just 4-15 from three. They drained eight more on 15 attempts after the break.

Missed free throws from the Pokes helped the Titans stay in the game as well. Wyoming was just 59% from the stripe to Cal State Fullerton’s 72%. Regardless, any Titan run was quickly snuffed-out by Wyoming’s well-rounded offense.

The Pokes built a sustainable five-point lead going into crunch time and drained the free throws Fullerton drew trying to get last-minute possessions, fluffing the lead to the game’s final 92-82 box score.

The Cowboys will next face Austin Peay State University Tuesday, Nov. 11 at 6:30 p.m. in Laramie. For more information, see the Cowboys’ schedule here.

” data-medium-file=”https://i0.wp.com/oilcity.news/wp-content/uploads/2025/11/IMG_6035-scaled.jpg?fit=300%2C190&quality=89&ssl=1″ data-large-file=”https://i0.wp.com/oilcity.news/wp-content/uploads/2025/11/IMG_6035-scaled.jpg?fit=780%2C494&quality=89&ssl=1″ alt=”” class=”wp-image-360101″ srcset=”https://i0.wp.com/oilcity.news/wp-content/uploads/2025/11/IMG_6035-scaled.jpg?w=2560&quality=89&ssl=1 2560w, https://i0.wp.com/oilcity.news/wp-content/uploads/2025/11/IMG_6035-scaled.jpg?resize=300%2C190&quality=89&ssl=1 300w, https://i0.wp.com/oilcity.news/wp-content/uploads/2025/11/IMG_6035-scaled.jpg?resize=1024%2C649&quality=89&ssl=1 1024w, https://i0.wp.com/oilcity.news/wp-content/uploads/2025/11/IMG_6035-scaled.jpg?resize=768%2C487&quality=89&ssl=1 768w, https://i0.wp.com/oilcity.news/wp-content/uploads/2025/11/IMG_6035-scaled.jpg?resize=1536%2C974&quality=89&ssl=1 1536w, https://i0.wp.com/oilcity.news/wp-content/uploads/2025/11/IMG_6035-scaled.jpg?resize=2048%2C1298&quality=89&ssl=1 2048w, https://i0.wp.com/oilcity.news/wp-content/uploads/2025/11/IMG_6035-scaled.jpg?resize=1200%2C761&quality=89&ssl=1 1200w, https://i0.wp.com/oilcity.news/wp-content/uploads/2025/11/IMG_6035-scaled.jpg?resize=2000%2C1268&quality=89&ssl=1 2000w, https://i0.wp.com/oilcity.news/wp-content/uploads/2025/11/IMG_6035-scaled.jpg?resize=780%2C494&quality=89&ssl=1 780w, https://i0.wp.com/oilcity.news/wp-content/uploads/2025/11/IMG_6035-scaled.jpg?resize=400%2C254&quality=89&ssl=1 400w, https://i0.wp.com/oilcity.news/wp-content/uploads/2025/11/IMG_6035-scaled.jpg?resize=706%2C448&quality=89&ssl=1 706w, https://i0.wp.com/oilcity.news/wp-content/uploads/2025/11/IMG_6035-scaled.jpg?w=2340&quality=89&ssl=1 2340w, https://i0.wp.com/oilcity.news/wp-content/uploads/2025/11/IMG_6035-scaled.jpg?w=370&quality=89&ssl=1 370w” sizes=”(max-width: 780px) 100vw, 780px”/>

Abou Magassa versus Cal State Fullerton Nov. 8, 2025 (Garrett Grochowski, Oil City News)

Source link

Wyoming

Wyoming Family Bags Five Huge Mule Deer In One Incredible Season

Published

1 day ago

November 8, 2025

Press Room

Wyoming Family Bags Five Huge Mule Deer In One Incredible Season

If there is one lesson to be taken away from a Wyoming family’s magnificent mule deer hunting season, it’s that putting in the work scouting an area ahead of time can pay off big time.

Ryan and Jannette Hansen — along with their sons Tanner, 17, Brock, 15 and Parker, 13 — all shot huge bucks in the same southwest Wyoming deer hunt area.

The family lives in Mountain Home in Uinta County, and spending time outdoors has been a way of life for them. Ryan and Jannette both grew up hunting.

The couple also has two adult sons that have left home and were also raised as avid hunters.

But even amid such a legacy, the Hansens’ 2025 deer hunting season was exceptional.

Ryan told Cowboy State Daily that it partly came down to luck, and sheer tenacity while hunting.

However, he credits the family putting in the work ahead of time. Once they drew tags for the hunt area, they spent months scouting it.

They put in countless hours getting to know the terrain, hiking all over the place, observing deer’s movements, and picking out which bucks they wanted to go after once the hunting season started.

“It wasn’t just a case of, ‘Hey, let’s go drive down the road and see if we can shoot a deer,’” he said.

“We really put in the work ahead of time. We put in the effort, and we were rewarded and blessed for our efforts,” Ryan added.

Parker Hansen got this mule deer buck during a family hunting trip in southwest Wyoming. (Courtesy Ryan Hansen)

One Heck Of A First Deer

Their hunt area “has it all” in terms of terrain and deer habitat, Ryan said.

Vast sage flats, rugged canyons, thick timber, mountain slopes; it’s all there, and the deer thrive in it, he said.

The family started hunting there during the September archery season but didn’t get any deer.

Mule deer are notoriously difficult to hunt with a bow, Ryan said.

“We had a lot of failed stalks, and a couple of missed shots,” he said.

“Anybody that kills a mule deer with a bow is definitely a stud in my book. In all of our books,” he added.

The rifle hunting season ran from Oct. 15 to Oct. 31, and the Hansens took full advantage of it.

Parker got the first buck, on opening day of rifle season.

He made a great shot at 463 yards, and it was his first deer ever.

When asked by Cowboy State Daily how he plans to follow up getting a big buck as his first deer, Parker gave a simple answer.

“Get a bigger deer,” he said.

Parker’s buck was at the bottom of a steep canyon.

“That was definitely a hard pack out. It was literally straight up and out of that canyon,” gaining about 700 feet in elevation, Ryan said.

Tanner Hansen got this mule deer buck during a family hunting trip in southwest Wyoming. (Courtesy Ryan Hansen)

One Buck After Another

Jannette shot her buck the next day, at 250 yards. Packing that deer out was easier than Parker’s buck had been but still challenging, Ryan said.

“I’m glad I had Tanner, he’s my pack horse,” he said.

Tanner told Cowboy State Daily that packing out big game animals comes naturally to him.

“It’s something I love to do, I’m a hiker,” he said.

The day that Brock dropped his buck didn’t start out so well.

“He woke up sick, throwing up,” Ryan said.

Brock still insisted on going hunting. As the morning progressed, he started feeling a little better.

“When we stopped for lunch, he got worse again,” Ryan said.

Jannette considered taking him home. But on the drive out they spotted a nice buck, which disappeared into some timber.

They decided to go after it. Ryan practically had to carry Brock because his son was so weakened by sickness.

But Brock was still excited to get the opportunity. They found the buck again and everything came together when Brock made a 160-yard shot.

He told Cowboy State Daily that the adrenaline rush of getting a chance at such a quality buck helped him forget his illness for a short while.

“It was because he was so big,” Brock said.

The family returned home, and Tanner and Ryan went back out by themselves.

They hunted all day with no luck. As evening settled in, they were high on a ridge when Tanner finally spotted a buck he wanted to go after, far below.

“He bombed off the top of that ridge and went right after him (the buck),” Ryan said.

Ryan went back to the truck and drove to where he knew Tanner would probably come out after pursuing the deer.

“It was about 10 miles of driving to get back to where he was,” Ryan said.

Tanner tracked the buck, and when it jumped from cover, he made a 250-yard shot.

Father and son packed the deer out in the dark, with headlamps to light their way.

Jannette Hansen got this mule deer buck during a family hunting trip in southwest Wyoming. (Courtesy Ryan Hansen)

A Bittersweet Ending

Only Ryan’s deer tag was left unfilled. The rest of the family returned for the weekend and they hunted together, but to no avail.

With the season coming to an end and his family back home, Ryan headed out for the last couple of days with a good family friend.

They moved to a different section of the hunt unit, and when Ryan’s opportunity finally came, he dropped his buck with a 150-yard shot.

The deer hunting season that is sure to become a family legend was finally over.

“I was relieved that we were done. But kind of sad at the same time. It was a culmination of everything we had done,” Ryan said.

Brock Hansen got this mule deer buck during a family hunting trip in southwest Wyoming. (Courtesy Ryan Hansen)

A Freezer Full Of Venison

Jannette told Cowboy State Daily that she’s immensely proud of her family’s hunting accomplishment, and she doesn’t take living in Wyoming for granted.

“My nieces and nephews live in the city, and they don’t even go outside,” she said.

“Living in Wyoming is such a huge blessing in and of itself, for sure. It was a blessing for us to go out as a family and get all five deer,” she added.

The boys decided to get European mounts of their bucks. That being, a simple trophy mount, with just the animal’s cleaned skull and antlers.

Ryan and Jannette plan to have a taxidermist do full shoulder mounts of their bucks, together on a double pedestal.

“It will be a ‘his and hers’ double buck taxidermy mount,” Ryan said.

For the family, the hunt isn’t just about the trophies and bragging rights. Hunting is still about being solidly connected to the time-honored tradition of providing themselves with fresh venison.

“Those deer don’t go to waste. We eat every bit of them,” Ryan said.

Mark Heinz can be reached at mark@cowboystatedaily.com.

Source link