On March 27, 2023, the SEC’s Division of Examinations (the “Division”) issued a Risk Alert on its observations from examinations of newly-registered advisers. The Division focused on whether newly-registered advisers...more
The Division of Examinations has revamped and updated its exam priorities according to its most recent release, 2023 Exam Priorities. Consistent with its typical approach the Division plans to focus on a blend of topics and...more
2/22/2023
/ Compliance ,
Derivatives ,
Examination Procedures ,
Fiduciary Duty ,
Investment Adviser ,
Investment Advisers Act of 1940 ,
Investment Companies ,
Investment Company Act of 1940 ,
Marketing ,
Private Equity Funds ,
Private Investment Funds ,
Registered Investment Advisors ,
Regulation BI ,
SEC Examination Priorities ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC)
The Division of Examinations issued a Risk Alert on September 19, 2022 focused on Advisers Act Rule 206(4)-1, the Advertising Rule, adopted on December 22, 2020. The Rule becomes effective on November 4, 2022....more
9/23/2022
/ Advertising ,
Compliance ,
Disclosure Requirements ,
Effective Date ,
Form ADV ,
Investment Adviser ,
Investment Advisers Act of 1940 ,
Marketing ,
New Rules ,
Policies and Procedures ,
Risk Alert ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC)
The new Director of the Enforcement Division, Gurbir Grewal, assumed his position during the Third Quarter of 2021. Even if he hits the ground running it typically takes time to adjust to the environment. ...more
11/3/2021
/ Conflicts of Interest ,
Cryptocurrency ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Enforcement Statistics ,
False Statements ,
Financial Fraud ,
Insider Trading ,
Investment Adviser ,
Misrepresentation ,
Municipal Bonds ,
Price Manipulation ,
Safeguards Rule ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC)
Tracking the key areas of concern to SEC enforcement can be beneficial for issuers, investment advisers and others that may be subject to scrutiny by the Commission. For example, identifying key areas of focus by determining...more
The fourth quarter of calendar year 2020 continued trends evidenced in the third quarter of the year, although far fewer cases were initiated. There were actions brought in a number of key areas such as offering fraud cases,...more
Compliance is a key issue for all firms. Many companies use the U.S. sentencing guidelines as a starting point. In other instances, regulators craft a starting point with rules that direct the creation of programs....more
The Commission’s Office of Compliance Inspections and Examinations or OCIE issued a Risk Alert on November 9, 2020 centered on questions keyed to supervision and compliance in the context of multiple branch advisories. The...more
Regulation Best Interest, born of a long debate over the appropriate standard to govern recommendations by broker-dealers, is now the subject of an OCIE Risk Alert. The staff is preparing to launch its first inspection for...more
Inspections for compliance with Form CRS and its rules will begin after the June 30, 2020 filing date, according to an OCIE Risk Alert dated April 7, 2020. The Alert identifies key areas the staff will be examining regarding...more
The first quarter of 2020 ended with the markets plummeting to new lows and much of the country shuttered in an effort to avoid transmitting COVID-19. SEC Enforcement finished the quarter by not filing any new cases in the...more
On March 13, 2020, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), indicating that it is closely monitoring the impact of coronavirus on investors, funds and advisers, announced regulatory relief for funds and investment...more
3/16/2020
/ Annual Meeting ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Corporate Governance ,
Disclosure Requirements ,
Filing Deadlines ,
Filing Requirements ,
Investment Adviser ,
Investment Company Act of 1940 ,
Investment Funds ,
Registered Investment Companies (RICs) ,
Relief Measures ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Virtual Meetings
The Exam Priorities of the SEC’s Office of Inspections and Compliance or OCIE, announced on January 7, 2020 (the “Exam Priorities”), should be a key area of focus for every investment advisor and investment company. The Exam...more
1/15/2020
/ Bank Secrecy Act ,
Broker-Dealer ,
Compliance ,
Customer Due Diligence (CDD) ,
Cybersecurity ,
Data Protection ,
Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) ,
FinTech ,
Investment Adviser ,
Libor ,
MSRB ,
Municipal Advisers ,
OCIE ,
Registered Investment Advisors ,
Retail Investors ,
SEC Examination Priorities ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Suspicious Activity Reports (SARs)
Earlier this year the SEC’s Enforcement Division published its annual report, reviewing FY 2019 which ended on September 30, 2019. As in the past, the Report reviewed not just the statistics from the year but also the entire...more
The SEC’s Division of Enforcement announced a new cooperation initiative addressed to investment advisers who have failed to disclose conflicts arising from the receipt of 12b-1 fees from mutual funds. In essence, the...more
2/14/2018
/ 12b-1 plan ,
Broker-Dealer ,
Disclosure Requirements ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Examination Priorities ,
Financial Institutions ,
Investment Adviser ,
Mutual Funds ,
Policies and Procedures ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Self-Reporting ,
Share Classes
The Commission prevailed at trial in a market manipulation case. The trial followed a series of settlements and a grant of summary judgment in the Commission’s favor as to one defendant. The remaining defendant, a former NFL...more
4/22/2016
/ Audits ,
Cherry Picking ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Hong Kong ,
Hong Kong Securities and Futures Commission (HKSFC) ,
Internal Controls ,
Investment Adviser ,
Investment Fraud ,
Jury Trial ,
Market Manipulation ,
Misrepresentation ,
PCAOB ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Securities Fraud ,
Swaps
It is fundamental that investment professionals accurately disclose their polices and procedures and adhere to them. Yet an increasing number of proceedings are being brought by based on failing to follow to those procedures....more
Undisclosed conflicts by investment advisers and others is a focus of the current SEC enforcement program. In its most recent action, the conflicts came from a firm with an indirect, undisclosed controlling interest in the...more
The SEC filed a settled action involving a registered investment adviser that made false statements in marketing materials about a strategy utilized by a sub-adviser. The adviser failed to evaluate statements in the materials...more
Ponzi scheme cases have, of course, become a staple of SEC enforcement since the discovery of Madoff’s unprecedented scheme. While there seems to be a virtually endless number of these cases centered on the preverbal “to good...more
Conflicts of interest and a failure to disclose related party transactions continue to be key themes in Commission actions involving investment advisers. Undisclosed conflicts, as well as a failure to disclose related party...more
The Commission filed another action in which admissions were required as part of the settlement. The action centeres on an investment adviser who misappropriated just under $2 million from his clients. As part of the...more
The SEC brought another enforcement action predicated on the failure of the firm to comply with its operating documents. In this instance the advisers to a fund failed to inform investors that it effectively changed the...more
Suits challenging the SEC’s forum selection decisions continue to proliferate. As the trend has unfolded the Commission posted a memo on its website discussing the issue of forum selection and has proposed modifications to...more
10/5/2015
/ Administrative Hearings ,
Administrative Law Judge (ALJ) ,
Administrative Procedure Act ,
Bebo v SEC ,
Chevron Deference ,
Dismissals ,
Dodd-Frank ,
Due Process ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Equal Protection ,
Fifth Amendment ,
Forum Selection ,
Investment Adviser ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Securities Exchange Act
Cybersecurity is one of the current hot topics of discussion. Regulators here and abroad have expressed concern regarding cybersecurity. Breaches are periodically reported in the media. Now the SEC has brought its first...more