A recent article by Bloomberg Law highlighted a significant shift in the Securities and Exchange Commission’s (SEC) approach to whistleblower claims. The article, “Whistleblower Awards Slow to Trickle as SEC Raises Bar on...more
7/29/2025
/ Dodd-Frank ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Final Rules ,
Financial Institutions ,
Financial Services Industry ,
Regulatory Agencies ,
Regulatory Requirements ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Securities Regulation ,
Whistleblower Awards ,
Whistleblower Protection Policies ,
Whistleblowers
Investing in the cannabis industry is not without its risks, given the evolving regulatory landscape and the varying state and federal statuses of the product itself. The Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) has...more
6/12/2025
/ Anti-Money Laundering ,
Bank Secrecy Act ,
BSA/AML ,
Cannabis Products ,
Cole Memorandum ,
Due Diligence ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Financial Crimes ,
Financial Institutions ,
Financial Services Industry ,
FinCEN ,
Investment Opportunities ,
Marijuana ,
Marijuana Related Businesses ,
Money Laundering ,
Reporting Requirements ,
Securities Regulation ,
Suspicious Activity Reports (SARs)
In the recent Supreme Court case, Navellier & Associates, Inc. v. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), the petitioners sought a writ of certiorari challenging the decisions of the lower courts regarding the scope of...more
5/16/2025
/ Appeals ,
Disgorgement ,
Fiduciary Duty ,
Financial Services Industry ,
Investment Adviser ,
Investment Advisers Act of 1940 ,
Materiality ,
Petition for Writ of Certiorari ,
Registered Investment Advisors ,
Regulatory Violations ,
SCOTUS ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Securities Fraud ,
Securities Litigation ,
Securities Regulation
On April 1, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the First Circuit vacated a summary judgment ruling in favor of the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) against Commonwealth Equity Services, LLC, also known as Commonwealth...more
4/17/2025
/ Appeals ,
Broker-Dealer ,
Conflicts of Interest ,
Disclosure Requirements ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Fiduciary Duty ,
Financial Services Industry ,
Investment Adviser ,
Investment Advisers Act of 1940 ,
Materiality ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Securities Litigation ,
Securities Regulation ,
Securities Violations ,
Summary Judgment ,
Transaction Fees
The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has reportedly announced internally a major reorganization of its enforcement and exams divisions. This restructuring, effective April 9, 2025, was detailed in a staff memo...more
4/8/2025
/ Cryptocurrency ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Enforcement Guidance ,
Enforcement Priorities ,
Financial Regulatory Reform ,
Financial Services Industry ,
Government Agencies ,
Regulatory Agencies ,
Regulatory Oversight ,
SEC Examination Priorities ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Securities Regulation
On September 4, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) issued an order against three investment adviser firms for violating the whistleblower protections of Rule 21F-17(a) under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934. This...more
On June 11, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) announced the first settled case in its ongoing review of collaborations between investment advisors and short publishers. The SEC fined affiliated investment advisors...more
It was a busy year for enforcement activity in the cyber, crypto, SPAC, and whistleblower spaces, with several pending actions that will likely have wide-ranging implications in 2024. We are also awaiting a ruling from the...more
2/29/2024
/ Artificial Intelligence ,
CFTC ,
Cryptocurrency ,
Cyber Attacks ,
Cybersecurity ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
False Claims Act (FCA) ,
Financial Crimes ,
Financial Services Industry ,
FinCEN ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Special Purpose Acquisition Companies (SPACs) ,
Whistleblowers
The Securities and Exchange Commission’s Division of Examinations has outlined its 2024 Examination Priorities, with a significant focus on cryptocurrency, emerging technology, and Anti-Money Laundering (AML) laws. This has...more
10/31/2023
/ Anti-Money Laundering ,
Broker-Dealer ,
BSA/AML ,
Consumer Privacy Rights ,
Customer Identification Program (CIP) ,
Financial Institutions ,
Financial Services Industry ,
Investment Adviser ,
Regulatory Agenda ,
SEC Examination Priorities ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Suspicious Activity Reports (SARs)
On October 4, U.S. Attorney for the Central District of California Martin Estrada announced the formation of a new task force, the Corporate and Securities Fraud Strike Force....more
10/13/2023
/ Bank Secrecy Act ,
California ,
Financial Markets ,
Financial Services Industry ,
Insider Trading ,
Money Laundering ,
Securities Fraud ,
Securities Regulation ,
Securities Transactions ,
Securities Violations ,
State and Local Government ,
Tax Evasion ,
Trading Platforms
On August 9, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) sent a letter to U.S. District Judge Analisa Torres requesting leave to file an interlocutory appeal in SEC v. Ripple Labs, Inc. as to the two adverse liability...more
8/17/2023
/ Appellate Courts ,
Cryptoassets ,
Digital Currency ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Financial Institutions ,
Financial Services Industry ,
Howey ,
Interlocutory Appeals ,
Leave to Appeal ,
Ripple ,
SCOTUS ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Securities Transactions ,
Token Sales ,
Trading Platforms
In a long-awaited decision in SEC v. Ripple Labs, Inc., U.S. District Judge Analisa Torres of the Southern District of New York held that Ripple Labs, Inc.’s (Ripple) XRP token is not, in and of itself, a security requiring...more
In recent years, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has had its eye on the special purpose acquisition company (SPAC) market — warning investors against putting money into SPACs, expressing skepticism about...more
Live Life Federal Credit Union, a $69 million-asset credit union based in Fraser, Michigan, recently consented to a cease-and-desist order issued by the National Credit Union Administration Board (NCUA). The enforcement...more
Covering legal developments and regulatory news for registered funds, their advisers and industry participants through June 30, 2019.
Auditor Independence With Respect to Certain Loans or Debtor-Creditor Relationships -
On...more
7/19/2019
/ Broker-Dealer ,
Capital Formation ,
Common Reporting Standard (CRS) ,
Conflicts of Interest ,
Duty of Care ,
Duty of Loyalty ,
ETFs ,
Fiduciary Duty ,
Financial Markets ,
Financial Services Industry ,
Form CRS ,
Investment Management ,
Investor Protection ,
Public Comment ,
Regulation Best Interest ,
Regulation S-X ,
Regulatory Standards ,
Rulemaking Process ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Securities Regulation