Katten's Financial Markets and Funds Quick Take is a monthly newsletter highlighting key noteworthy developments potentially affecting financial markets and funds....more
12/14/2023
/ Artificial Intelligence ,
CFTC ,
Cryptoassets ,
Cryptocurrency ,
EU ,
False Claims Act (FCA) ,
Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) ,
Financial Markets ,
Machine Learning ,
Non-Fungible Tokens (NFTs) ,
Stablecoins ,
UK
The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has been very busy these last few weeks as evidenced by a series of rule proposals released as part of what looks like an ambitious agenda for 2022. This includes tackling areas...more
Investment advisers that manage private funds should promptly review their compliance policies and procedures, practices and disclosures to ensure these address, and are not inconsistent with, the areas of concern raised in a...more
On February 9, by a vote of three to one, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) proposed five sweeping new rules governing private funds. The comment period on the proposal expires 60 days from February 9 or 30 days...more
Every five years, the Department of the Treasury conducts a benchmark survey on the ownership of foreign securities by US residents. Data is collected on Form SHC. Reporting is mandatory for all US resident custodians and US...more
Key Points -
Effective as of August 16, the dollar amount tests specified in the definition of “Qualified Client” in Rule 205-3 under the Investment Advisers Act of 1940 (Advisers Act) will increase for the net-worth...more
The recent defaults by Archegos caused several large broker-dealers to incur significant losses. Archegos represented that it operated as a single-family office, which made it exempt from many provisions of the federal...more
Recent initiatives by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) evidence the agencies' increasing intent to play significant roles in the ESG space....more
Environmental, social and governance (ESG) matters will increasingly be a priority for the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) as evidenced by...more
Key Points -
- Beginning February 1, new and amended rules will go into effect in New York that require certain individuals associated with investment advisers to register with the state and to meet examination...more
The Securities and Exchange Commission issued a proposed order that, if adopted, would provide an exemption to certain "finders," persons who connect potential buyers and sellers of securities for a fee, from broker-dealer...more
Earlier this year the Institutional Limited Partners Association (ILPA) released a Delaware-law based Model Limited Partnership Agreement (Model II LPA) for use by private equity fund sponsors wishing to implement a...more
Key Points
- SEC proposes significant changes to the Advisers Act “Advertising Rule” and “Cash Solicitation” Rule.
- The proposed definition of “Advertisements” expands the types of communications that are considered...more
12/16/2019
/ Advertising ,
Books & Records ,
Cash Solicitation Rule ,
Disclosure Requirements ,
Form ADV ,
Investment Adviser ,
Investment Advisers Act of 1940 ,
No-Action Letters ,
Private Funds ,
Proposed Amendments ,
Proposed Rules ,
Public Comment ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC)
On October 30, the Institutional Limited Partners Association (ILPA) published a comprehensive, Delaware-law based European style "fund as a whole" waterfall Model Limited Partnership Agreement (LPA) that can be used to...more
Hedge funds have evolved far beyond traditional structures and exotic instruments. Today, hedge funds seek new ways to generate returns by partially reigning in exposure to early investor withdrawals.
...more
The Institutional Limited Partners Association (ILPA) recently published the third edition of the ILPA Principles (Principles 3.0). ILPA originally published the principles in 2009 to encourage discussion between general...more
8/5/2019
/ Carried Interest ,
Clawbacks ,
Corporate Governance ,
Environmental Social & Governance (ESG) ,
Fund Managers ,
General Partnerships ,
Institutional Limited Partners Association (ILPA) ,
Investors ,
Limited Partnerships ,
Line of Credit ,
Management Fees ,
New Guidance ,
Private Equity ,
Private Equity Funds ,
Shareholder Distributions
On April 16, the SEC's Office of Compliance Inspections and Examinations (OCIE) published a Risk Alert outlining issues related to compliance with Regulation S-P that it identified in its inspections of SEC-registered...more
4/26/2019
/ Broker-Dealer ,
Customer Information ,
Cybersecurity ,
Data Protection ,
Investment Adviser ,
OCIE ,
Opt-Outs ,
Personally Identifiable Information ,
Policies and Procedures ,
Regulation S-P ,
Risk Alert ,
Safeguards Rule ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC)
SEC/CORPORATE -
SEC Proposes To Expand “Test-the-Waters” Reforms to All Issuers -
On February 19, the Securities and Exchange Commission proposed Rule 163B under the Securities Act of 1933, which would permit any...more
3/4/2019
/ CFTC ,
Corporate Issuers ,
Emerging Growth Companies ,
EU ,
Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) ,
JOBS Act ,
Litigation Funding ,
MiFIR ,
Proposed Rules ,
Qualified Institutional Buyers ,
Regulation FD ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Testing-the-Waters Communications ,
UK ,
UK Brexit
With the vast majority of European Union (EU) regulatory focus recently having been on the Markets in Financial Instruments Directive (MiFID II), it is important not to overlook the impending implementation of the EU's...more
On November 29, the US Department of Labor (DOL) finalized its 18-month extension of the transition period under the Best Interest Contract Exemption (the "BIC Exemption"). As described in Katten's earlier advisory,...more
On August 9, the US Department of Labor (DOL) announced in a court filing that it has proposed an 18-month extension of the full implementation of the Best Interest Contract Exemption (the "BIC Exemption") under the ERISA...more
On July 25, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC or the Commission) published a Report of Investigation (Report) pursuant to Section 21(a) of the Securities Exchange Act of 19341 concluding that digital tokens issued...more
8/3/2017
/ Blockchain ,
Cryptocurrency ,
Distributed Ledger Technology (DLT) ,
Howey ,
Initial Coin Offering (ICOs) ,
Offerings ,
Registration Requirement ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Token Sales ,
Unregistered Securities ,
Virtual Currency
The DOL's "fiduciary advice rule" (the "Rule") will take effect on June 9, 2017. The DOL has published FAQs on the implementation of the Rule applicable to the period between June 9th and December 31st (the "Transition...more
Registered investment advisers should take note of recent pronouncements by the staff of the SEC's Division of Investment Management (the "Division") regarding Rule 206(4)-2 (the "Custody Rule") of the Investment Advisers Act...more
In a speech on April 30, 2015. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) Chair Mary Jo White noted that...
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