Failures by a number of investment advisers to comply with certain rules governing principal and agency cross trades has prompted the compliance inspections staff of the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) to issue a...more
10/1/2019
/ Cross Trading ,
Disclosure Requirements ,
Failure to Comply ,
Fiduciary Duty ,
Investment Adviser ,
Investment Advisers Act of 1940 ,
OCIE ,
Policies and Procedures ,
Pooled Investment Vehicles ,
Regulatory Oversight ,
Regulatory Requirements ,
Risk Alert ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Securities Transactions ,
Strict Compliance
On July 23, the SEC’s Office of Compliance Inspections and Examinations (OCIE) released a risk alert setting forth compliance issues that OCIE had observed during its series of examinations of SEC-registered investment...more
The SEC’s Office of Compliance Inspections and Examinations (OCIE) issued a risk alert warning that investment advisers and broker-dealers “[do] not always use the available security features” on various network storage...more
7/2/2019
/ Broker-Dealer ,
Data Protection ,
Information Governance ,
Information Technology ,
Investment ,
Investment Adviser ,
Network Security ,
OCIE ,
Policies and Procedures ,
Privacy Concerns ,
Risk Alert ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Security Standards
In response to the increasing prevalence of general partner (GP)-led secondary fund restructurings, the Institutional Limited Partners Association (ILPA) has released guidance regarding this practice. ...more
The SEC’s Office of Compliance Inspections and Examinations (OCIE) published a risk alert to encourage registrants to review their privacy policies in light of certain deficiencies observed by OCIE staff during recent...more
Amid increasing enforcement activity with respect to cryptocurrencies, coins and tokens, the SEC recently issued guidance intended to provide clarity to the markets. ...more
5/1/2019
/ Cryptocurrency ,
Digital Assets ,
Financial Instruments ,
Financial Transactions ,
FinHub ,
Initial Coin Offering (ICOs) ,
Investment Opportunities ,
No-Action Letters ,
Regulatory Oversight ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Securities Regulation ,
Token Sales
On Dec. 22, 2017, the Qualified Opportunity Zone tax incentive program was signed into law as part of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017....more
4/25/2019
/ Capital Gains ,
Community Development ,
Economic Development ,
Investment Funds ,
IRS ,
Opportunity Zones ,
Qualified Opportunity Funds ,
Real Estate Development ,
Real Estate Investments ,
Tax Cuts and Jobs Act ,
Tax Deferral ,
Tax Incentives
In a regulatory first, the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) announced its 2019 examination priorities for registrants of the Division of Market Oversight (DMO), the Division of Swap Dealer and Intermediary...more
3/1/2019
/ CFTC ,
Cryptocurrency ,
Designated Contract Markets (DCMs) ,
DMO ,
DSIO ,
Examination Priorities ,
Financial Markets ,
Rulemaking Process ,
SEFs ,
Swaps ,
Trading Plans
The SEC staff has issued a no-action letter to Madison Capital Funding LLC, allowing the registered investment adviser to conduct certain loan syndication activities despite its inability to comply with certain requirements...more
The SEC’s Office of Compliance Inspections and Examinations (OCIE) released its examination priorities for 2019 in order to promote the transparency of its investigation program....more
2/1/2019
/ Anti-Money Laundering ,
Cryptocurrency ,
Cybersecurity ,
Digital Assets ,
Examination Priorities ,
Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) ,
Investment Opportunities ,
MSRB ,
OCIE ,
Regulatory Agenda ,
Regulatory Oversight ,
Retail Investors ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC)
The 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act created new tax incentives for investing in the U.S. Among these is an opportunity to defer capital gains tax by reinvesting such gains in qualified opportunity funds (QOFs). ...more
Faced with various compliance issues related to the ‘cash solicitation rule’, the Staff issued a risk alert to inform market participants and help advisers update their policies accordingly....more
In a sign of continued enforcement activity involving cryptocurrency products and services, the SEC fined Zachary Coburn, the founder of EtherDelta, for operating an unregistered national securities exchange....more
12/3/2018
/ Blockchain ,
Broker-Dealer ,
Cryptocurrency ,
Digital Assets ,
Digital Currency ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Fines ,
Initial Coin Offering (ICOs) ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Securities Violations ,
Token Sales ,
Trading Platforms ,
Unregistered Securities
The U.S. District Court for the District of Massachusetts recently sided with the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) and decided that virtual currencies are commodities. This ruling confirms the regulator’s...more
In a regulatory first, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has issued a cease and desist order and imposed a $200,000 fine against a hedge fund that invested in digital assets and its founder. ...more
10/1/2018
/ Bitcoin ,
Cease and Desist Orders ,
Cryptocurrency ,
Digital Assets ,
Digital Currency ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Financial Instruments ,
Initial Coin Offering (ICOs) ,
Investment Company Act of 1940 ,
Investment Opportunities ,
Regulatory Oversight ,
Regulatory Requirements ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Token Sales ,
Unregistered Securities ,
Virtual Currency
Amid concerns that many investors may not fully understand the risks associated with virtual currencies, or the limits of regulatory oversight, the National Futures Association (NFA) recently issued an interpretive notice...more
9/5/2018
/ Bitcoin ,
Commodities ,
Commodity Trading Advisors (CTAs) ,
CPOs ,
Cryptocurrency ,
Currency Exchange ,
Cybersecurity ,
Digital Currency ,
Disclosure Requirements ,
Financial Markets ,
Futures ,
Futures Commission Merchants (FCMs) ,
Interpretive Rule ,
Introducing Brokers ,
Investment Products ,
Investor Protection ,
National Futures Association ,
NFA ,
Popular ,
Regulatory Oversight ,
Regulatory Requirements ,
Virtual Currency
After a surge in popularity and an increased interest from regulators, virtual currencies — also known as cryptocurrencies — have entered into a new phase in their relatively short history, with an increase in class actions...more
8/3/2018
/ Bitcoin ,
Blockchain ,
Class Action ,
Cryptocurrency ,
Digital Currency ,
Distributed Ledger Technology (DLT) ,
False Advertising ,
Initial Coin Offering (ICOs) ,
Investors ,
Material Misrepresentation ,
Offerings ,
Popular ,
Securities Fraud ,
Securities Violations ,
Token Sales ,
Unfair Competition ,
Unregistered Securities ,
Virtual Currency
On July 11, 2018, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) issued a risk alert outlining certain compliance issues identified by its Office of Compliance Inspections and Examinations (OCIE) related to the obligation to...more
8/1/2018
/ Best Execution ,
Fiduciary Duty ,
Investment Adviser ,
Investment Advisers Act of 1940 ,
OCIE ,
Policies and Procedures ,
Regulatory Oversight ,
Regulatory Requirements ,
Risk Alert ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Securities Transactions ,
Strict Compliance
The regulatory focus on initial coin offerings (ICOs) in France continues unabated, with the French Treasury proposing a new legislative framework, yet to be officially adopted, that aims to balance the development of ICO...more
As part of the ongoing efforts of the federal government, agencies and financial market regulators to respond to the growing cryptocurrency market, the Office of Foreign Asset Control (OFAC) of the Department of Treasury...more
On April 18, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) proposed a trio of rules and interpretations designed to enhance the quality and transparency of investors’ relationships with investment advisers (IAs) and...more
5/2/2018
/ Best Interest Standard ,
Broker-Dealer ,
Conflicts of Interest ,
Fiduciary Duty ,
Financial Services Industry ,
Investment Adviser ,
Investment Products ,
Public Comment ,
Regulatory Oversight ,
Regulatory Standards ,
Retail Investors ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC)
On April 12, 2018, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) issued a risk alert outlining certain compliance issues identified by the regulator’s Office of Compliance Inspections and Examinations (OCIE) related to...more
The regulatory focus on initial coin offerings (ICOs) has not diminished since our last client alert where we mentioned that the public consultation of the French Financial Markets Authority (AMF) proposed to develop an ad...more
Both the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) recently released their respective 2018 examination priorities, providing a glimpse into their plans for the year to...more
3/2/2018
/ Anti-Money Laundering ,
Capital Raising ,
Cryptocurrency ,
Customer Due Diligence (CDD) ,
Digital Currency ,
Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) ,
Financial Markets ,
Initial Coin Offering (ICOs) ,
Investment Funds ,
OCIE ,
Popular ,
Regulatory Agenda ,
Regulatory Oversight ,
SEC Examination Priorities ,
Secondary Markets ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Token Sales ,
Virtual Currency
After our recent client alert summarizing recent U.S. regulatory developments in the crypto-world, the House of Representatives of the State of Wyoming passed HB 70, referred to as the “Utility Token Bill” and HB 19, known as...more
3/1/2018
/ Cryptocurrency ,
Digital Currency ,
EU ,
Financial Markets ,
France ,
Initial Coin Offering (ICOs) ,
Regulatory Agenda ,
Switzerland ,
Token Sales ,
Unregistered Securities ,
Virtual Currency