The last two decades have been marked by robust enforcement of the U.S. Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (“FCPA”) by the U.S. Department of Justice (“DOJ”) and Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”). In line with its “shock...more
Amid a challenging environment for exits, especially in the wake of the recent market volatility, private fund managers continue to pursue alternative strategies, such as term extensions and liquidity solutions, to ride out...more
Confession: writing this in May 2025, we cannot predict with confidence what the rest of 2025 will bring. The year has already seen four months of change and upheaval – political, regulatory, and economic. The new US...more
5/1/2025
/ Compliance ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Enforcement ,
Environmental Social & Governance (ESG) ,
Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) ,
Investment Funds ,
Portfolio Companies ,
Private Equity ,
Private Funds ,
Regulatory Requirements ,
Risk Management ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Securities Regulation
The Voting Record and Public Statements of the Commissioners Provide a Roadmap -
There has been much speculation on what SEC enforcement will look like under a new administration, especially now that President-elect Donald...more
12/23/2024
/ Cryptocurrency ,
Cybersecurity ,
Data Breach ,
Enforcement ,
Pay-To-Play ,
Penalties ,
Recordkeeping Requirements ,
Regulatory Reform ,
Rulemaking Process ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Statutory Interpretation ,
Transparency ,
Trump Administration
The Securities and Exchange Commission’s (“SEC”) National Examination Program is designed to improve compliance, prevent fraud, monitor risk and inform policy. It is also a consistent source of referrals to the SEC’s Division...more
11/13/2024
/ Artificial Intelligence ,
Compliance ,
Confidentiality Agreements ,
Custody Rule ,
Disclosure Requirements ,
Enforcement ,
Environmental Social & Governance (ESG) ,
Filing Requirements ,
Fraud ,
Fund Managers ,
Greenwashing ,
Indemnification ,
MNPI ,
Pay-To-Play ,
Recordkeeping Requirements ,
Retail Investors ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Whistleblowers
Following its adoption almost one year ago of amended rules accelerating filing deadlines for Schedules 13G and 13D (and the imminent effectiveness of the new deadlines for 13Gs), the SEC has continued to bring enforcement...more
As we reach the midpoint of 2024, the SEC has maintained its rigorous enforcement stance on the private funds industry, proposing new rules and oversight tools to better identify and investigate market practices. As 2024...more
6/14/2024
/ Artificial Intelligence ,
Data Retention ,
Employee Training ,
Enforcement ,
Fraud ,
Fund Managers ,
Hedge Funds ,
Indemnification ,
Instant Messaging Apps ,
Investment Adviser ,
Investment Advisers Act of 1940 ,
New Rules ,
Pay-To-Play ,
Policies and Procedures ,
Private Funds ,
Recordkeeping Requirements ,
Retail Investors ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC)
The SEC’s recent settlement involving a “pay-to-play” rule violation by a private equity firm is a timely reminder for fund managers, especially with the November elections approaching.
As a refresher, Rule 206(4)-5 of...more
5/29/2024
/ Compliance ,
Employee Training ,
Enforcement ,
Exempt Reporting Advisers (ERAs) ,
Fund Managers ,
Investment Adviser ,
Investment Advisers Act of 1940 ,
Pay-To-Play ,
Political Contributions ,
Private Equity Firms ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Settlement
The SEC’s new and proposed rules on cybersecurity and cyber-incident reporting will have a dual impact on private investment advisers and funds.
First, the proposal by the SEC will impose cybersecurity related...more
4/18/2024
/ Cyber Incident Reporting ,
Cybersecurity ,
Data Collection ,
Enforcement ,
Governance Standards ,
Investment Adviser ,
New Rules ,
Policies and Procedures ,
Recordkeeping Requirements ,
Regulatory Agenda ,
Risk Management ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Technology Sector
In its final Private Fund Adviser Rules adopted last year, the SEC dropped one of the more controversial proposed rules—the proposal to prohibit contractual exculpation or indemnification provisions that would shield or...more
4/16/2024
/ Anti-Fraud Provisions ,
Compliance ,
Enforcement ,
Fiduciary Duty ,
Indemnification ,
Investment Adviser ,
Investment Advisers Act of 1940 ,
Negligence ,
Private Funds ,
Releases ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC)
ESG continues to be a hot topic for 2024 for investors and regulators alike. The specific concerns investors and regulators have – and what they expect to develop over the coming months – differ, however, across...more
4/1/2024
/ Breach of Duty ,
Disclosure Requirements ,
Enforcement ,
Environmental Social & Governance (ESG) ,
EU ,
Fiduciary Duty ,
Financial Statements ,
Form 10-K ,
Greenhouse Gas Emissions ,
Greenwashing ,
Investors ,
Jurisdiction ,
Proposed Rules ,
Regulation S-K ,
Regulation S-X ,
Regulatory Agenda ,
Sustainability ,
UK
In a wave of SEC rulemaking this past year, representing a “new world order” event akin to Dodd-Frank, the SEC has provided itself with a fresh set of tools to increase regulatory and enforcement scrutiny on private funds....more
3/26/2024
/ Conflicts of Interest ,
Corporate Counsel ,
Cybersecurity ,
Enforcement ,
Environmental Social & Governance (ESG) ,
New Amendments ,
New Rules ,
Portfolio Companies ,
Private Equity ,
Regulatory Agenda ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC)
The SEC’s recent enforcement settlement involving a fund manager highlights the SEC’s focus on an investor’s “control purpose” triggering the requirement to file on a Schedule 13D as opposed to a short-form 13G. At issue was...more
3/8/2024
/ Enforcement ,
Fund Managers ,
Hedge Funds ,
Investors ,
Passive Investments ,
Private Equity Firms ,
Schedule 13D ,
Schedule 13G ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Securities Litigation ,
Settlement ,
Swap Agreements
On November 14, 2023, the SEC’s Division of Enforcement announced its Enforcement Results for Fiscal Year 2023. Below are some key takeaways for fund managers:
The Commission brought 760 total enforcement actions in FY...more
11/21/2023
/ Broker-Dealer ,
Civil Monetary Penalty ,
Disgorgement ,
Enforcement ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Environmental Social & Governance (ESG) ,
Investment Adviser ,
Investment Companies ,
Noncompliance ,
Private Funds ,
Rulemaking Process ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Settlement ,
Whistleblower Awards ,
Whistleblowers
On August 24, 2023, the Second Circuit Court of Appeals issued its much-anticipated decision in Kirschner v. JP Morgan Chase Bank, holding that the syndicate term loans at issue were not securities. As noted in our earlier...more
Go to any private equity event in the last 12 months, and “energy transition” will have been discussed, meaning the shift in energy production away from fossil‑based systems to low or zero carbon ones. As fund managers...more
5/10/2023
/ Climate Change ,
Energy Sector ,
Enforcement ,
Environmental Social & Governance (ESG) ,
Investment ,
Investors ,
Liquidity ,
Risk Alert ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
SFDR ,
Taxonomy
On March 15, 2023, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) released its proposal to amend Regulation S-P: Privacy of Consumer Financial Information and Safeguarding Customer Information (the “Proposed...more
4/5/2023
/ Cryptoassets ,
Cybersecurity ,
Data Breach ,
Enforcement ,
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) ,
Information Technology ,
Investment Adviser ,
Investment Company Act of 1940 ,
Notice Requirements ,
Policies and Procedures ,
Proposed Amendments ,
Regulation S-P ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Sensitive Personal Information
Crypto firm bankruptcies and resulting disruption in the crypto ecosystem will continue to exacerbate liquidity and regulatory concerns in this space. Signs of contagion are evident as prices of almost every cryptocurrency...more
In the registered fund world, we spent much of the past year focused on complying with – and implementing – new, operationally complex rules covering derivatives, valuation and fund-of-fund investments, among others. This...more