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No-Action Relief Allows Business Development Companies to Hold Shares of Investment Advisers

In two separate no-action letters, the SEC staff quietly expanded the ability of business development companies (BDCs) to invest in registered investment advisers. Section 12(d)(3) of the Investment Company Act of 1940...more

Uniform Fiduciary Standard Still a Priority, But No Timeline Yet

Both the SEC and FINRA believe that the question of whether a uniform fiduciary standard should be imposed on broker-dealers and investment advisers needs to be resolved. The problem is, neither one seems to have a view...more

SEC Won’t Object To Aggregation of Certain Client Investments in Private Funds

In a Guidance Update published this week, the SEC’s Division of Investment Management said that it would not object if related investment advisors registered jointly with the SEC and operating a single advisory business...more

Halloween Shivers: Frightening Times Ahead for RIAs?

Two Halloween announcements by securities regulators may frighten investment advisers. The October 31 statements from the SEC and the North American Securities Administrators Association (NASAA) suggest that federal and...more

SEC Targets More Firms for Custody Rule Violations

On October 28, 2013, the SEC sanctioned three registered investment advisers for, among other things, violating Rule 206(4)-2 under the Advisers Act (the “Custody Rule”). These settled actions, the subject of a special SEC...more

SEC’s Champ to Fund Directors: Let’s Work Together to Advance a Common Purpose

The Director of the SEC’s Division of Investment Management seeks a “successful collaboration” between fund directors and the SEC staff to further a common purpose: to protect investors....more

Financial Fraud Law Report: October 2013 - Insider Trading in Mutual Funds: Do Traditional Theories Apply?

A federal court of appeals recently held out the possibility that insider trading prohibitions — at least under the classic theory — do not apply to mutual fund redemptions. The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh...more

SEC Sanctions Three More Investment Advisers for Compliance Violations

The SEC’s Compliance Program Initiative bore more enforcement fruit. SEC today sanctioned three investment advisory firms for repeatedly ignoring compliance problems. The Initiative targets firms that fail to address...more

Investment Management Legal + Regulatory Update -- October 2013

- Regulatory Updates: CFTC Adopts “Substituted Compliance” Approach for Registered Investment Companies that are Commodity Pools; SEC’s Final Rules on General Solicitation and Bad Actor Disqualification for Investment...more

Mary Jo White to Private Funds: Embrace the New Era of Transparency

In remarks to the Managed Funds Association, SEC Chair Mary Jo White encouraged hedge funds to embrace increased transparency under post-financial crisis rules and justified the SEC’s expanded jurisdiction, rule-making and...more

SEC Enforcement Division to CCOs: We Are in This Together!

Stephen Cohen, the SEC’s Associate Director of Enforcement, tied robust compliance programs to enforcement “credits”. In remarks to compliance and ethics professionals at the annual conference of the Society of...more

SEC Sanctions Investment Adviser for Pushing Class A Shares When Investors Qualified to Buy Institutional Class Shares

The Securities and Exchange Commission sanctioned an investment adviser and its owner for failing to seek best execution and breaching their fiduciary duty in selecting mutual fund share classes for three advisory...more

ETF Mergers Possible Under Rule 17a-8

Can two affiliated ETFs merge in reliance on Rule 17a-8 under the Investment Company Act despite representations they made to obtain exemptive relief from the Commission? That’s the question addressed in a recent Guidance...more

Court Tosses ETF Securities Lending Fee Case

A federal district court in Tennessee dismissed a case brought by two union pension funds claiming that securities lending fees paid by an ETF to its adviser’s affiliate violated the adviser’s fiduciary duty under Section...more

Giving the CCO Teeth: SEC Sanctions Portfolio Manager for Misleading CCO

The SEC brought its first action for misleading and obstructing the work of a CCO this week, finding that a portfolio manager deliberately altered documents and misled the firm’s CCO in an attempt to hide violations of the...more

SEC Staff: Private Stock Certificates May Not Be Subject to Custody Rule

In a recent IM Guidance Update, the SEC’s Division of Investment Management said that it would not object if registered investment advisers (RIAs) to certain private funds do not maintain “private stock certificates” with a...more

SEC Steps into Fund Boardroom Once Again; Charges Adviser with Misleading Board

The SEC charged a registered investment adviser and its principal with misleading a mutual fund’s board about the adviser’s portfolio management trading capabilities. The SEC said the adviser misled the board at two meetings...more

CFTC Adopts “Substituted Compliance” Approach for Registered Investment Companies that Are Commodity Pools

In a dramatic change of course, the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) adopted final rules that apply a “substituted compliance” approach for disclosure and compliance obligations of registered investment companies...more

Insider Trading in Mutual Funds: Do Traditional Theories Apply?

A federal court of appeals held out the possibility that insider trading prohibitions – at least under the classic theory – do not apply to mutual fund redemptions. The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit...more

Non-U.S. broker-dealers and investment advisers may have U.S. registration requirements when existing clients relocate to the...

The SEC recently reminded non-U.S. broker-dealers and advisers with clients that relocate to the United States that they may be required to register under the U.S. securities laws. On July 31, 2013, the SEC sanctioned a...more

FINRA Enforcement Action Stresses Procedures for Due Diligence on Private Placements of Investment Funds

In a recent formal disciplinary proceeding, FINRA reaffirmed member firms’ obligations to maintain adequate procedures for conducting due diligence on private placements, including the review of sales materials, and systems...more

Court of Appeals Upholds Dismissal of Case Alleging Disclosure Violations by Leveraged ETFs

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit upheld the dismissal by a lower court of investors’ claims that certain ETF prospectuses failed to adequately disclose the risk of significant losses over an extended period of...more

Mean What You Say and Say What You Mean: FINRA Raises Concerns About Advertising “Free” and “No-Fee” Services

FINRA is once again focusing on member firms’ communications with the public. Regulatory Notice 13-23 provides members with guidance regarding disclosure of fees in communications about retail brokerage accounts and...more

Investment Management Legal + Regulatory Update -- July 2013

In This Issue: Regulatory Updates - SEC Proposes Money Market Reform; SEC Eases Ban on General Solicitation and General Advertising in Certain Private Placements; SEC and CFTC Adopt Joint Rules to Address...more

Broker-Dealer Email Systems Must Keep Pace with Firm Growth, FINRA Says

A recent FINRA disciplinary action sends a strong message to broker-dealers that the development of their compliance systems — particularly with respect to email review and retention — must keep pace with the growth of their...more

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