The staff of the SEC’s Division of Investment Management (the “Staff”) granted no-action relief with respect to the rebate of advisory fees by Amerivest Investment Management, LLC (the “Adviser”) to eligible clients for which...more
The OCC issued final guidelines (the “Final Guidelines”) that call for strengthened governance and risk management practices at the following categories of large financial institutions with $50 billion or more in average...more
The staff of the SEC’s Division of Corporation Finance added to its Compliance and Disclosure Interpretations posted on the SEC website new Questions 255.48-255.49 and 260.35-260.38 which address (1) elements of the...more
The SEC’s Divisions of Investment Management and Corporation Finance issued Staff Legal Bulletin No. 20 (the “Guidance”) which provides guidance from the Division of Investment Management to investment advisers on their...more
The staff of the SEC’s Division of Investment Management issued IM Guidance Update No. 2014-8 (the “Guidance Update”) to provide guidance based on comments the Division has provided on the information required to be presented...more
On June 16, 2014, the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority, Inc. (“FINRA”) accepted a Letter of Acceptance, Waiver and Consent (the “AWC”) from Merrill Lynch, Pierce, Fenner & Smith Incorporated (the “Firm”) regarding an...more
The SEC settled public administrative proceedings against TL Ventures Inc., a venture capital fund adviser (the “VC Fund Adviser”) and Penn Mezzanine Partners Management, L.P. (the “Private Fund Adviser” and with the VC Fund...more
The FRB, FDIC and OCC (the “Agencies”) published the first of a series of four requests seeking public comments to identify regulations of the respective Agencies that are seen as outdated, unnecessary or unduly burdensome. ...more
On May 2, 2014, the Internal Revenue Service (“IRS”) issued Notice 2014-33 (the “Notice”) providing that calendar years 2014 and 2015 will be regarded as a transition period for purposes of IRS enforcement and administration...more
The staff of the SEC’s Division of Investment Management (the “Staff”) issued IM Guidance Update No. 2014-5, which provides guidance on responding to selected items in Form N-8F, the from used to apply for deregistration...more
The SEC extended until April 28, 2014 the comment periods previously re-opened on its rule proposals regarding asset-backed securities described in the releases entitled “Asset-Backed Securities” (the “2010 Release”) and...more
In a speech presented to the Association of Certified Anti-Money Laundering Specialists on March 17, 2014, Comptroller of the Currency Thomas J. Curry said that the OCC is seeing progress in terms of the priority that senior...more
On January 28, 2014, the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority, Inc. (“FINRA”) accepted a Letter of Acceptance, Waiver and Consent (the “AWC”) from a member firm, Banorte-Ixe Securities International, Ltd. (the “Firm”), and...more
The staff of the SEC’s Division of Investment Management (the “Staff”) provided additional guidance (the “Guidance”) on the scope of the “knowledgeable employee” category of investors who may be disregarded in determining...more
On February 4, 2014, the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority, Inc. (“FINRA”) accepted a Letter of Acceptance, Waiver and Consent (the “AWC”) from a member firm (the “Firm”) and its former anti-money laundering (“AML”)...more
The National Futures Association (the “NFA”) issued Notice I-14-06 providing guidance to its members regarding their Bylaw 1101 obligation to determine the CFTC registration and NFA membership status of persons with whom they...more
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’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 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 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 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
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