Overview
Rick Coyle is a partner and member of Chapman’s Investment Management Group and serves on the firm's Employment Committee.
He focuses his practice on the representation of investment funds and their investment advisers and sponsors. In this capacity, he advises registered investment companies, private investment companies, commodity pools, registered investment advisers, commodity pool operators, index providers, and broker-dealers on a variety of matters pertaining to the Investment Company Act of 1940, the Securities Act of 1933, the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, the Investment Advisers Act of 1940, the Commodity Exchange Act, and other federal securities laws.
Rick has particular experience representing exchange-traded fund (ETF) sponsors and is a member of Chapman's ETF team, which serves as fund counsel to over 600 ETFs with cumulative assets under management exceeding $350 billion. His clients include a wide range of asset managers—from large, established firms to start-up managers. He has advised and represented numerous ETF clients in launching novel products, including the first Solana ETF, one of the first-day Bitcoin ETFs, and the first "defined outcome" buffer ETFs. He has significant experience in representing issuers seeking to use derivatives to provide unique exposures in the ETF wrapper.
Rick has experience with the formation and provision of ongoing advice to closed-end funds, interval funds, mutual funds, and unit investment trusts. He has advised registered fund and adviser clients regarding a wide variety of operational matters, including mergers, changes of control, reorganizations, and other such matters.
Rick has advocated strongly on behalf of the digital asset and blockchain industry and advised numerous clients in matters relating to cryptocurrencies and blockchains. He has met with US Senators, members of the US House of Representatives, SEC Commissioners, and CFTC Commissioners regarding various initiatives and proposed legislation impacting the industry. He has also advised clients on the use of blockchains by asset managers and in securities offerings.
Practice Focus
Admitted
Illinois
Education
University of Michigan Law School, J.D., cum laude, 2013
University of Michigan, B.A., Political Science, 2011
Insights
Publications
- Contributor, "Request for Information Regarding National Securities Exchanges and Alternative Trading Systems Trading Crypto Assets," The Digital Chamber's Letter to the Securities and Exchange Commission, April 17, 2026
- Contributor, "Comments to SR-NYSEARCA-2025-54," The Digital Chamber's Letter to the US Securities and Exchange Commission, August 25, 2025
- Contributor, "Beyond Merit: How the SEC's Division of Investment Management Blocked Permissible Investments in Digital Assets," The Digital Chamber, February 2025
- Co-Author, "ETF Share Classes: A Path Forward," The Investment Lawyer, February 2024
- Co-Author, "The Crypto Conundrum: Why Won’t the SEC Approve a Bitcoin ETF?," The Chamber of Digital Commerce, September 2022
- Co-Author, "ETF Prospectus Liability: Taking Stock after Jensen v. iShares," The Investment Lawyer, March 2018
Presentations
- Panelist, "Law & Blockchain," University of Illinois Gies College of Business Blockchain Summit 2023, April 28, 2023
- Presenter, "SEC Pumps the Brakes on Bitcoin Funds," Chicago Bar Association, Investment Management Subcommittee Meeting, January 31, 2018
- Presenter, "California Court Applies 'Tracing' Requirement to Actions Brought Against ETF Issuers Under Section 11 of the 1933 Act," Chicago Bar Association, Investment Management Subcommittee Meeting, October 12, 2017
- Presenter, "SEC Approves New Continued Listing Standards for ETFs," Chicago Bar Association, Investment Management Subcommittee Meeting, April 27, 2017
Community
Little Wish Foundation
- Vice Chairman of the Board of Directors
- Co-Founder of the Golden Night of Wishes annual charity event
