In a settled enforcement action, the SEC assessed a civil money penalty against a director of Medient Studios, Inc. for two missed Section 16 filings. But there was really only one transaction that was missed. One was a...more
The SEC announced a settled action against Beverly Hills-based investment adviser, Platinum Equity Advisors, LLC, for charging three of its private equity fund clients with about $1.8 million more than it should have in...more
The CFTC filed a federal civil enforcement action in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York against Defendants Nicholas Gelfman, of Brooklyn, New York, and Gelfman Blueprint, Inc. (GBI), a New York...more
9/22/2017
/ Banking Sector ,
Bitcoin ,
CFTC ,
Digital Currency ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Fraud ,
Investment Fraud ,
Investment Management ,
Misappropriation ,
Ponzi Scheme ,
Popular
Barbara Duka was an employee of Standard & Poor’s Ratings Services. The SEC contended that Duka loosened S&P’s methodology for rating commercial mortgage-backed securities to help the company generate ratings business from...more
9/1/2017
/ Administrative Law Judge (ALJ) ,
Anti-Fraud Provisions ,
Cease and Desist Orders ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Rule 10b-5 ,
S&P ,
Section 17(a) ,
Securities Act of 1933 ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Securities Exchange Act ,
Securities Fraud
In an investigation conducted at the request of four Senators, the SEC Inspector General concluded “we do not find that Commissioner Piwowar’s actions as Acting Chairman violated any of the laws currently governing the SEC...more
David I. Osunkwo was a principal at Strategic Consulting Advisors, LLC, or SC Consulting. SC Consulting offered compliance consulting and CCO services to two SEC registered investment adviser firms under common control, Aegis...more
In remarks before the Economic Club of New York, new SEC Chairman Jay Clayton discussed eight guiding principles:
Principle #1: The SEC’s mission is our touchstone. Investors and capital markets will suffer if the SEC...more
7/13/2017
/ Best Interest Contract Exemptions ,
Capital Markets ,
Disclosure Requirements ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Fiduciary Rule ,
Financial Institutions ,
Investment ,
Investment Adviser ,
Publicly-Traded Companies ,
Regulatory Oversight ,
Reporting Requirements ,
Retirement Plan ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC)
The SEC recently brought charges against the CEO and CFO of UTi Worldwide Inc. in a settled enforcement proceeding. The Company was engaged in multinational freight forwarding and logistics operations. In connection with its...more
The SEC announced that John David Telfer, the former chief compliance officer and anti-money laundering (AML) officer of a registered broker-dealer, agreed to a securities industry bar to settle charges in a pending...more
The SEC announced enforcement actions against 27 individuals and entities behind various alleged stock promotion schemes that left investors with the impression they were reading independent, unbiased analyses on investing...more
On January 17, 2017, the SEC announced nine settled enforcement actions for violations of the pay-to-pay rule against private equity, venture capital and hedge fund sponsors. The firms involved agreed to pay monetary...more
1/23/2017
/ De Minimis Claims ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Government Officials ,
Hedge Funds ,
Investment Adviser ,
Pay-To-Play ,
Political Candidates ,
Political Contributions ,
Private Equity ,
Rule 206(4)-5 ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Venture Capital
SEC staff in the Office of Compliance Inspections and Examinations are examining compliance with key whistleblower provisions arising out of the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act. The staff is...more
We are thrilled to bring you the third installment of Stinson Leonard Street's Emerging Trends newsletter. We are proud of the depth and breadth of experience and knowledge across our firm's 13 offices nationwide and are...more
10/17/2016
/ Acquisitions ,
Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) ,
Automotive Industry ,
CFTC ,
Chemicals ,
Class Action ,
Confidentiality Agreements ,
Connected Cars ,
Controlling Stockholders ,
Covered Entities ,
Cybersecurity ,
Cybersecurity Framework ,
Data Retention ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Disability Discrimination ,
Disgorgement ,
Dodd-Frank ,
Drinking Water ,
Driverless Cars ,
Employee Training ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Entire Fairness Standard ,
Fiduciary Duty ,
Financial Institutions ,
Geolocation ,
Incident Response Plans ,
Mergers ,
Mobile Apps ,
New Amendments ,
Niantic Inc. ,
Nintendo ,
NYDFS ,
OEHHA ,
OSHA ,
Pokemon ,
Proposition 65 ,
Public Nuisance ,
Regulatory Oversight ,
Risk Management ,
Safe Harbors ,
Sarbanes-Oxley ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Severance Agreements ,
Smartphones ,
Statute of Limitations ,
Technology ,
Teva Pharmaceuticals ,
Third-Party Service Provider ,
Toxic Chemicals ,
Toxic Exposure ,
Vendors ,
Video Games ,
Virtual Reality ,
Warning Labels ,
Website Accessibility ,
Websites ,
Whistleblowers
The SEC has brought its second case for retaliation against a whistleblower against International Game Technology. According to the SEC, the whistleblower, a director of an IGT division, started working at IGT in 2008 and...more
On two successive days, the SEC brought settled enforcement actions against issuers for failure to report sales of unregistered securities. Under Item 1.01 of Form 8-K, a registrant must disclose its entry into a material...more
9/28/2016
/ Common Stock ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Financial Institutions ,
Financial Markets ,
Form 10-Q ,
Form 8-K ,
Regulation S-K ,
Reporting Requirements ,
Securities ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Securities Fraud ,
Unregistered Securities
In connection with a partial settlement of alleged fraudulent activities, the SEC charged three directors of a company associated with the fraud that did not participate in the fraud with failing to make Section 16 filings....more
In a settled enforcement action, the SEC charged a private equity advisor, First Reserve Management, L.P., with conflicts of interest and other matters. First Reserve did not admit or deny the SEC’s findings....more
The SEC announced the award of more than $22 million to a whistleblower whose detailed tip and extensive assistance helped the agency halt a well-hidden fraud at the company where the whistleblower worked.
The $22...more
The SEC charged four private equity fund advisers affiliated with Apollo Global Management for misleading fund investors about fees and a loan agreement and failing to supervise a senior partner who charged personal expenses...more
The SEC has approved a final rule amending its rules of practice for administrative proceedings. Among other things, the final rules would adjust the timing of administrative proceedings and give parties additional...more
The SEC has charged a registered private equity fund adviser and its principal for receiving transaction-based compensation for the provision of brokerage services in connection with the acquisition and disposition of...more
The CFTC announced that a federal court in New York issued a Consent Order imposing a permanent injunction against CFTC Defendants Heet Khara and Nasim Salim, residents of the United Arab Emirates (UAE), prohibiting them from...more
The SEC charged Kansas-based Central States Capital Markets, its CEO, and two employees for breaching their fiduciary duty by failing to disclose a conflict of interest to a municipal client. The case is the SEC’s first to...more
The SEC alleges that Marrone Bio Innovations, Inc. misstated its revenue. The SEC recently brought a settled enforcement action against its former CFO. The SEC alleges the CFO received bonuses during the 12-month periods...more
The CFTC issued an Order filing and simultaneously settling charges against Arya Motazedi for engaging in fraudulent transactions in the New York Mercantile Exchange’s (NYMEX) RBOB Gasoline Physical futures contract and CL...more