On Oct. 7, 2020, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) voted to adopt a new rule (Rule 12d1-4), and related amendments to existing rules and forms, to enact a comprehensive regulatory framework for “fund of funds”...more
On July 6, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC or Commission) announced its long-awaited adoption of amendments (the Amendments) to Rule 0-5 (17 CFR 270.0-5) under the Investment Company Act of 1940 (the 1940 Act)...more
On June 23, the SEC’s Office of Compliance Inspections and Examinations (OCIE) released a risk alert (the Risk Alert) that identified three general areas of deficiencies in regard to its examination of private fund advisers:...more
Section 2(a)(41)(B) of the Investment Company Act of 1940 (1940 Act) requires that portfolio securities without readily available market quotations be valued at “fair value as determined in good faith by the board of...more
Last Monday, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) voted to propose new Rule 2a-5 under the Investment Company Act of 1940 (1940 Act) establishing a framework for funds’ fair value determinations (Proposed Rule)....more
On Dec. 18, 2019, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC or Commission) proposed amendments to broaden the definition of “Accredited Investor” under Regulation D to cover a broader group of investors, including adding...more
12/20/2019
/ Accredited Investors ,
Comment Period ,
Fund Managers ,
Hedge Funds ,
Investment ,
Investment Funds ,
Investment Management ,
Private Equity ,
Private Funds ,
Proposed Amendments ,
Regulation D ,
Regulatory Agenda ,
Retail Investors ,
Rulemaking Process ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Securities Regulation
On Nov. 25, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) voted 5-0 to propose or repropose new rules revamping the framework for permissible use of derivatives and short sales by investment companies (other than money market...more
In an effort to modernize the regulation of ETFs, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (the SEC) announced today its adoption of Rule 6c-11 (the New Rule) which establishes a clear and consistent framework for the...more
9/27/2019
/ Disclosure Requirements ,
ETFs ,
Exchange-Traded Products ,
Exemptions ,
Fund of Funds ,
Harmonization Rules ,
New Rules ,
Policies and Procedures ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Transparency ,
Websites
On Aug. 1, the Securities and Exchange Commission (the SEC) charged Commonwealth Equity Services LLC, dba Commonwealth Financial Network (Commonwealth), a registered independent investment adviser to private clients (but not...more
9/3/2019
/ Breach of Duty ,
Broker-Dealer ,
Conflicts of Interest ,
Disclosure Requirements ,
Disgorgement ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Failure To Disclose ,
Fiduciary Duty ,
Investment Adviser ,
Investment Advisers Act of 1940 ,
Investment Funds ,
Investment Management ,
Mutual Funds ,
Permanent Injunctions ,
Prejudgment Interest ,
Revenue Sharing ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Self-Reporting ,
Share Classes ,
Statutory Violations ,
Unjust Enrichment
On Aug. 21, 2019, the Securities and Exchange Commission (the SEC) voted 3–2 to publish new guidance on the proxy voting responsibilities of investment advisers under Rule 206(4)-6 under the Investment Advisers Act of 1940...more
On June 18, 2019, the SEC issued a concept release requesting comments on, among other things, whether to liberalize the definition of “Accredited Investor” under Regulation D to cover a broader group of investors, including...more
7/1/2019
/ Accredited Investors ,
Comment Period ,
Fund Managers ,
Investment Opportunities ,
Private Funds ,
Public Comment ,
Regulation D ,
Regulatory Standards ,
Retail Investors ,
Rulemaking Process ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC)
On June 18, 2019, the SEC adopted final amendments (the “Amendments”) to the auditor independence rules set forth in Rule 2-01(c)(1)(ii)(A) of Regulation S-X (the “Loan Rule”). The Loan Rule identifies debtor-creditor...more
6/21/2019
/ Auditors ,
Beneficial Owner ,
Bright-Line Rule ,
Debtor-Creditor ,
Investment Management ,
Loans ,
Regulation S-X ,
Regulatory Standards ,
Rulemaking Process ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Shareholders
On June 5, 2019, the SEC adopted a package of rules and interpretations (the Adopted Rules) to clarify and further articulate the relationship between retail investors and their broker-dealers or investment advisers....more
6/7/2019
/ Best Interest Standard ,
Broker-Dealer ,
Conflicts of Interest ,
Disclosure Requirements ,
Employee Benefits ,
Fiduciary Duty ,
Financial Services Industry ,
Individual Retirement Account (IRA) ,
Investment Adviser ,
Investment Products ,
Regulatory Standards ,
Retail Investors ,
Retirement Plan ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Securities Regulation
Investors that own large stakes in a bank can trigger the Federal Reserve’s oversight if they have “controlling influence” over the bank. ...more
6/4/2019
/ Bank Holding Company Act ,
Banking Regulators ,
Board of Directors ,
Comment Period ,
Controlling Stockholders ,
Corporate Governance ,
Federal Reserve ,
Financial Institutions ,
FinTech ,
Investors ,
Stock Ownership ,
Threshold Requirements ,
Transparency
The SEC has adopted rule amendments to simplify disclosure requirements consistent with its mandate under the Fixing America’s Surface Transportation (FAST) Act. ...more
5/1/2019
/ Amended Rules ,
Corporate Governance ,
Disclosure Requirements ,
EDGAR ,
Emerging Growth Companies ,
Filing Requirements ,
Financial Regulatory Reform ,
Financial Statements ,
Fixing America’s Surface Transportation Act (FAST Act) ,
MD&A Statements ,
Publicly-Traded Companies ,
Regulation S-K ,
Regulatory Agenda ,
Regulatory Burden ,
Regulatory Oversight ,
Rulemaking Process ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC)
In March 2019, the SEC, at the direction of Congress, proposed rules (the “Proposed Rules”) to modify the registration, communications, and offering processes for business development companies (“BDCs”) and registered...more
Following a request from the Independent Directors Council (a registered investment company board advocacy group affiliated with the trade association Investment Company Institute), the SEC staff has provided relief from...more
In a no-action letter (the Relief) issued on Oct. 12, 2018, to the Independent Directors Council, the Securities and Exchange Commission staff (the Staff) confirmed that they would not recommend enforcement if a fund’s board...more
At an open meeting on June 28, 2018, the SEC adopted liquidity disclosure amendments and proposed new rules to ease the approval process for new exchange-traded funds (ETFs). ...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
On Feb. 6, Jay Clayton and Christopher Giancarlo, the chairmen of the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC), respectively, jointly testified before the Senate Banking...more
3/1/2018
/ Bitcoin ,
Blockchain ,
CFTC ,
Cryptocurrency ,
Digital Currency ,
Distributed Ledger Technology (DLT) ,
ETFs ,
Financial Markets ,
Initial Coin Offering (ICOs) ,
Investment ,
Regulatory Oversight ,
Risk Management ,
Token Sales ,
Trading Platforms ,
Virtual Currency
On Oct. 26, 2017, the U.S. Treasury Department (Treasury) released the latest installment in a series of reports on financial regulation required by the president’s Feb. 3 executive order on the financial system....more
12/1/2017
/ Asset Management ,
Capital Markets ,
CFTC ,
Commodity Pool ,
Dodd-Frank ,
ETFs ,
Executive Orders ,
Financial Regulatory Reform ,
Insurance Industry ,
Investment Funds ,
Liquidity Risk Management Rule ,
Stress Tests ,
Trump Administration ,
U.S. Treasury ,
Volcker Rule
Among the plethora of investment products available, index funds have historically been considered among the more respectable, reliable and generally safe options for investors and markets alike....more
SEC Offers Guidance on ‘Fast-Growing Trend’ of Robo-Advisers -
As technology and robo-advisers become increasingly common options for asset managers and investors alike, the SEC is taking a closer look at some of the...more