The Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC”) and Department of Labor (“DOL”) reached settlements with Western Asset Management (the “Adviser”), a registered investment adviser and subsidiary of Legg Mason Inc., under...more
The SEC’s Office of Compliance Inspections and Examinations (“OCIE”) issued a National Examination Program Risk Alert that summarizes OCIE staff observations on investment adviser due diligence practices with respect to...more
The SEC adopted amendments to the expiration dates of certain interim final rules adopted in July 2011. The interim final rules provide exemptions under the Securities Act of 1933, the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, and...more
The Mutual Fund Directors Forum issued a report designed to provide practical guidance to mutual fund directors about overseeing “alternative funds.” The report treats as an “alternative fund” any registered open-end fund...more
In testimony before the Senate Banking Committee on February 6, FRB Governor Daniel Tarullo set forth the FRB’s top regulatory priorities for 2014. While Governor Tarullo noted the recent progress in implementing the...more
On January 14, 2014, the House of Representatives passed H.R. 801, the Holding Company Registration Threshold Equalization Act of 2013 (the “Act”), which would increase the number of shareholders that trigger registration and...more
On January 9, 2014, FINRA made a filing with the SEC (SR-2014-003) that proposes to amend Rule 5110 to: (1) narrow the scope of the definition of “participation or participating in a public offering;” (2) modify the lock-up...more
The SEC settled public administrative proceedings against a portfolio manager (the “Portfolio Manager”) over misrepresentations he made or caused to be made to prospective and existing investors in the private equity fund of...more
The SEC’s Office of Compliance Inspections and Examinations (“OCIE”) announced the 2014 examination priorities (the “Announcement”) for its National Examination Program (the “NEP”). The priorities are organized according to...more
1/30/2014
/ Broker-Dealer ,
Compliance ,
Corporate Governance ,
Enforcement ,
Fraud ,
General Solicitation ,
Investigations ,
NEP ,
OCIE ,
Retirement ,
Rule 506 Offerings ,
Securities Act of 1933 ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC)
The OCC issued proposed guidelines (the “Proposed Guidelines”) that would establish minimum standards for the design and implementation of a risk governance framework (the “Risk Framework”) by national banks, federal savings...more
The National Futures Association (“NFA”) issued Notice to Members I-14-03 seeking comment from its Member CPOs and CTAs as it considers (a) possible means of ensuring that each CPO or CTA has sufficient assets to operate as a...more
The SEC’s Office of Municipal Securities has released a list of frequently asked questions and answers (the “FAQ”) that presents its views regarding various aspects of the SEC’s municipal advisor registration rules (the...more
The Staff of the SEC’s Division of Investment Management issued IM Guidance Update 2014-1 which suggests risk management measures and related communications with fund boards that fund advisers may want to consider in view of...more
The SEC has issued a temporary stay of its municipal advisor registration rules (the “Final Rules”). The stay means that the rules, which were to become effective on January 13, 2014, will not apply until July 1, 2014. ...more
The SEC’s Office of Compliance Inspections and Examinations (“OCIE”) announced the 2014 examination priorities (the “Announcement”) for its National Examination Program (the “NEP”). The priorities are organized according to...more
The Federal Reserve Board (the “FRB” or the “Board”) issued an advance notice of proposed rulemaking (the “ANPR”) seeking public comment on issues related to activities concerning physical commodities conducted by financial...more
In a letter to all FINRA member firms (the “FINRA Priorities Letter”), FINRA set forth its regulatory and examination priorities for 2014, highlighting significant risks and issues that could adversely affect investors and...more
The Federal Reserve Board, the OCC, the FDIC, the SEC and the CFTC (collectively, the “Agencies”) adopted an interim final rule (the “Interim Rule”) that provides relief from certain requirements of the Volcker rule for...more
1/15/2014
/ Bank Holding Company Act ,
Banks ,
CFTC ,
Collateralized Debt Obligations ,
Compliance ,
Dodd-Frank ,
FDIC ,
OCC ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Trust Preferred Securities ,
Volcker Rule
JPMorgan Chase & Co. and its affiliates (collectively, “JPMorgan”) agreed to pay an aggregate of $2.05 billion to resolve civil and criminal claims generally related to JPMorgan’s Bank Secrecy Act (“BSA”) compliance program...more
1/15/2014
/ Bank Secrecy Act ,
Bernie Madoff ,
Deferred Prosecution Agreements ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
FinCEN ,
Fraud ,
JPMorgan Chase ,
OCC ,
Ponzi Scheme ,
Settlement ,
Suspicious Activity Reports (SARs)
The CFTC has determined that certain entity-level swap requirements of six non-U.S. jurisdictions are generally “comparable” to those of the Commodity Exchange Act and CFTC regulatory regime. ...more
The FDIC’s Division of Risk Management Supervision’s Winter 2013 issue of Supervisory Insights includes an article (the “Article”) that discusses how the banking industry’s asset mix and funding profile have shifted during...more
The FDIC released four new videos (the “Videos,” and each a “Video”) designed to provide technical assistance to directors, officers and employees of depository institutions that are FDIC insured. The Videos are available on...more
1/9/2014
/ Banks ,
Compliance ,
Corporate Officers ,
Debt Restructuring ,
Directors ,
Fair Lending ,
FDIC ,
Leases ,
Municipal Bonds ,
Municipal Securities Issuers ,
Municipal Securities Market
On December 27, 2013, the SEC adopted final amendments (“Final Amendments”) to remove certain references to ratings by nationally recognized statistical rating organizations (“NRSROs”) (e.g., Standard & Poor’s, Moody’s...more
The SEC issued Release No. 34-71194 (the “Adopting Release”) adopting amendments under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 (the “Exchange Act”) that remove references to credit ratings by ratings agencies (including...more
The SEC settled public administrative proceedings against Merrill, Lynch, Pierce, Fenner & Smith Inc. (the “Sponsor”) relating to the structuring and marketing of three collateralized debt obligations (“CDOs”) and separately...more