In episode Matt Kelly and I take a deep dive into a recent SEC enforcement action involving Susan Diamond, a CCO at a financial advisory firm. She made representations on forms submitted to the SEC regarding the firm’s status, audits and reporting that were material miss-statements. She was severely sanctioned with a $15,000 penalty and a nine-month suspension from working with any investment adviser or financial firm. And after that, she will be barred permanently from working as a compliance officer at broker-dealers and investment See more +
In episode Matt Kelly and I take a deep dive into a recent SEC enforcement action involving Susan Diamond, a CCO at a financial advisory firm. She made representations on forms submitted to the SEC regarding the firm’s status, audits and reporting that were material miss-statements. She was severely sanctioned with a $15,000 penalty and a nine-month suspension from working with any investment adviser or financial firm. And after that, she will be barred permanently from working as a compliance officer at broker-dealers and investment advisory firms.
Matt and I explore the question of whether this portends potential more or greater liability and we conclude that it does not for a variety of factors including: (1) the egregiousness of the facts, (2) the prior liability of Diamond and her company, (3) the high regulatory scrutiny afforded to financial advisors, and (4) her outright material miss-statements. We also discuss the recent arrest of a VW compliance officer and detail how the criminal charges against him do not portend additional CCO liability. Finally we conclude with a discussion about the departure of the CCO from VW and what it says about the company’s commitment to an ethical culture. See less -
