On August 24, 2023, the Second Circuit Court of Appeals issued its much-anticipated decision in Kirschner v. JP Morgan Chase Bank, holding that the syndicate term loans at issue were not securities. As noted in our earlier...more
Yesterday, the five SEC commissioners voted 3-2, along party lines, to approve the Private Fund Adviser Rules. The final Rules scale back from what was initially proposed 18 months ago, in ways that are likely to be a relief...more
Participants in the syndicated loan markets may have been relieved last month when the SEC declined to file the amicus brief requested by the Second Circuit Court of Appeals in Kirschner v. JP Morgan Chase Bank. In an unusual...more
On November 4, 2022, compliance with amended Rule 206(4)-1 (the “Marketing Rule”) became mandatory for all investment advisers registered with the Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC”). Seven months since the...more
Recent enforcement actions highlight the increased regulatory scrutiny that private funds may face with respect to internal cybersecurity protocols and responses to cyber-crimes and cyber incidents under new and updated...more
5/23/2023
/ Coinbase ,
Compliance ,
Cyber Crimes ,
Cybersecurity ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Investment Advisers Act of 1940 ,
Investment Company Act of 1940 ,
New Legislation ,
Popular ,
Privacy Laws ,
Private Funds ,
Robinhood Financial ,
Sanctions ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC)
As IPOs and other traditional paths to liquidity for private assets have become more challenging, GP-led secondary transactions have emerged as a powerful and popular tool across closed-end private funds, leading to explosive...more
Go to any private equity event in the last 12 months, and “energy transition” will have been discussed, meaning the shift in energy production away from fossil‑based systems to low or zero carbon ones. As fund managers...more
5/10/2023
/ Climate Change ,
Energy Sector ,
Enforcement ,
Environmental Social & Governance (ESG) ,
Investment ,
Investors ,
Liquidity ,
Risk Alert ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
SFDR ,
Taxonomy
Pent up dry powder? Biggest emerging secondaries sectors? Leverage still a viable means to finance deals? Below is a “sneak peek” into what our Proskauer panelists have to say on these big topics. They, along with our lineup...more
It’s a pattern we often see in boom-and-bust cycles—disputes rising in the period after a wave crests. SPAC deal volume hit an unprecedented high in 2021, but then slowed down in 2022 alongside IPOs. However, the fallout from...more
The SEC’s Enforcement Division is conducting a sweep investigation of large investment advisers regarding their employees’ use of “off-channel” communications. The sweep, which has been widely reported in the press, focuses...more
4/25/2023
/ Asset Management ,
Breach of Duty ,
Compliance ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Fiduciary Duty ,
Investigations ,
Investment Adviser ,
Investment Advisers Act of 1940 ,
Private Funds ,
Recordkeeping Requirements ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC)
Implications of SEC attempt to curb indemnification for private fund managers -
The SEC spent 2022 making multiple and sweeping proposals to amend rules under the Advisers Act, many of which have the ability to...more
On March 15, 2023, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) released its proposal to amend Regulation S-P: Privacy of Consumer Financial Information and Safeguarding Customer Information (the “Proposed...more
4/5/2023
/ Cryptoassets ,
Cybersecurity ,
Data Breach ,
Enforcement ,
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) ,
Information Technology ,
Investment Adviser ,
Investment Company Act of 1940 ,
Notice Requirements ,
Policies and Procedures ,
Proposed Amendments ,
Regulation S-P ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Sensitive Personal Information
Crypto firm bankruptcies and resulting disruption in the crypto ecosystem will continue to exacerbate liquidity and regulatory concerns in this space. Signs of contagion are evident as prices of almost every cryptocurrency...more
Everything, everywhere, all at once, as a descriptor, captures the litigation and regulatory risks for the asset management industry in 2023. Every corner of the market faces greater risks than at any time since 2008. After...more
In the registered fund world, we spent much of the past year focused on complying with – and implementing – new, operationally complex rules covering derivatives, valuation and fund-of-fund investments, among others. This...more
On February 7, 2023, the Division of Examinations (“Division” or EXAMS”) of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) released its 2023 Examination Priorities (“Annual Priorities”). Released at the beginning of...more
The SEC staff has issued an FAQ related to amended Rule 206(4)-1 under the Investment Advisers Act (the “Marketing Rule”) clarifying that the net/gross rules apply to extracted performance that may consist of returns of...more
In the late fall of 2020, the SEC implemented rule amendments which created a single rule, the Marketing Rule, that replaces the current Advertising and Cash Solicitation Rules. The Marketing Rule represents both significant...more
10/14/2022
/ Advertising ,
Anti-Fraud Provisions ,
Cash Solicitation Rule ,
Compliance ,
Disclosure Requirements ,
Endorsements ,
Enforcement ,
Exempt Reporting Advisers (ERAs) ,
Marketing ,
New Rules ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Solicitation
On Monday, September 19, 2022, the SEC’s Division of Examinations issued a Risk Alert announcing their intent to conduct targeted reviews of registered investment advisers regarding compliance with amended Advisers Act Rule...more
9/23/2022
/ Advertising ,
Amended Rules ,
Compliance ,
Investment Advisers Act of 1940 ,
Marketing ,
New Rules ,
Policies and Procedures ,
Recordkeeping Requirements ,
Registered Investment Advisors ,
Risk Alert ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC)
On May 25, the Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) issued proposed rules under the Investment Advisers Act of 1940 (“Advisers Act”) for advisers to private funds that consider environmental, social or governance...more
6/13/2022
/ Corporate Governance ,
Disclosure Requirements ,
Environmental Social & Governance (ESG) ,
Financial Services Industry ,
Investment Adviser ,
Investment Advisers Act of 1940 ,
Private Funds ,
Proposed Rules ,
Regulatory Agenda ,
Regulatory Reform ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC)
Monday, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) announced that it will reopen the public comment period on its proposed rules relating to private fund advisers. The comment period will now remain open until 30...more
The SEC last month proposed rules under the Advisers Act indicating a dramatic shift in how the SEC intends to reduce conflicts of interest involving private fund managers and their investors. As we previously noted in the...more
5/3/2022
/ Anti-Fraud Provisions ,
Clawbacks ,
Conflicts of Interest ,
Fund Managers ,
Investment ,
Investment Adviser ,
Investment Advisers Act of 1940 ,
Investment Management ,
Investors ,
Private Funds ,
Proposed Rules ,
Regulatory Agenda ,
Regulatory Reform ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Securities Regulation
Final comments were due last week to the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC)’s proposed cybersecurity risk management rules for registered investment advisers, registered investment companies and business development...more
4/28/2022
/ Cybersecurity ,
Data Privacy ,
Investment Adviser ,
Investment Advisers Act of 1940 ,
Investment Company Act of 1940 ,
Investment Management ,
Popular ,
Proposed Rules ,
Registered Funds ,
Risk Management ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC)
If adopted, the proposals will likely impact market practices -
In a trinity of proposing releases rolled out in less than three months, the SEC has comprehensively proposed to regulate the use of derivatives and short...more
4/15/2022
/ Beneficial Owner ,
Derivatives ,
Family Offices ,
Financial Markets ,
Hedge Funds ,
Private Funds ,
Proposed Regulation ,
Regulatory Agenda ,
Regulatory Reform ,
Regulatory Requirements ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Securities Regulation ,
Short Sales ,
Swaps
On March 30, 2022, the Division of Examinations (the “Division”) of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC”) announced its examination priorities for fiscal year 2022. The annual publication of the Division’s...more