On February 15th 2023, the Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC”, or the “Commission”) proposed a new safeguarding rule. Comments must be received by the SEC on or before 60 days after the rule’s publication in the...more
2/27/2023
/ Banks ,
Brokers ,
Cryptoassets ,
Federal Savings Associations ,
Foreign Financial Institutions (FFI) ,
Investment Advisers Act of 1940 ,
Investment Company Act of 1940 ,
Proposed Rules ,
Recordkeeping Requirements ,
Reporting Requirements ,
Safeguards Rule ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Written Agreements
Is an “Ask” a Violation of the Advisers Act? Yes, it can be a violation to “put in a good word” for one of your family members. On January 5, 2023, the Securities and Exchange Commission (the SEC) entered into an Offer of...more
On June 23, 2020, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) Division of Examinations (EXAMS) issued a risk alert based on 5 years of examinations of registered investment advisers that manage private equity funds or...more
On December 22, 2020, the Securities and Exchange Commission announced it had finalized reforms under the Investment Advisers Act to modernize rules that govern investment adviser advertisements and payments to solicitors....more
The Securities and Exchange Commission’s Office of Compliance Inspections and Examinations (“OCIE”) highlighted alternative data, or “alt data,” as a top examination priority. AIMA held a webinar on November 17, 2020, for...more
12/16/2020
/ AIMA ,
Breach of Contract ,
Compliance ,
Data Mining ,
Due Diligence ,
Employee Training ,
Infringement ,
Investment Advisers Act of 1940 ,
MNPI ,
OCIE ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Web Scraping
The Office of Compliance Inspections and Examinations (OCIE) issued a risk alert on November 19, 2020 related to the Advisers Act compliance rule, Rule 206(4)-7. Some key takeaways for Chief Compliance Officers (CCOs) are as...more
On November 2, 2020, the SEC’s Division of Enforcement issued its 2020 Annual Report for the fiscal year ending September 30, 2020. While the Enforcement Division filed 405 standalone enforcement actions – the lowest total in...more
11/12/2020
/ Audits ,
Compensation ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Custody Rule ,
Disclosure Requirements ,
Fund Transfers ,
Insider Trading ,
Investment Advisers Act of 1940 ,
Misallocation of Funds ,
MNPI ,
Past Performance ,
Private Funds ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC)
On October 23, 2020, the SEC Division of Investment Management’s Chief Accountant’s Office (“IMCAO”) issued three separate “Dear CFO” letters addressing (i) the determination of when a fund commences operations, (ii)...more
The Securities and Exchange Commission (“Commission” or “SEC”) recently instituted settled administrative and cease-and-desist proceedings against a chief compliance officer of a registered investment adviser for record...more
Non-Enforcement -
Mutual Fund Directors Must Be Vigilant in Addressing Risks -
In remarks to the Mutual Fund Directors Forum, SEC Chair Mary Jo White outlined some of the risks and challenges that mutual fund...more
6/3/2016
/ 12b-1 plan ,
Civil Monetary Penalty ,
Conflicts of Interest ,
Custody Rule ,
Directors ,
Disgorgement ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Fiduciary Duty ,
Investment Adviser ,
Investment Advisers Act of 1940 ,
Liquidity ,
Mutual Funds ,
No-Action Relief ,
PCAOB ,
Permanent Injunctions ,
Prejudgment Interest ,
Private Funds ,
Risk Assessment ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Securities Fraud ,
Sub-advisers ,
Summary Judgment ,
Third-Party Service Provider
Non-Enforcement -
Amendments to the Venture Capital Fund Adviser and Private Fund Adviser Exemptions -
Last month the SEC’s Division of Investment Management issued a guidance update (Update) addressing recent...more
5/2/2016
/ Commercial Bankruptcy ,
Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) ,
Exemptions ,
Fixing America’s Surface Transportation Act (FAST Act) ,
Guidance Update ,
Investment Advisers Act of 1940 ,
Joint and Several Liability ,
Multi-Employer Pensions ,
Multiemployer Pension Plan Amendments Act (MPPAA) ,
Partnership-in-Fact ,
Private Equity Funds ,
Private Funds ,
SBIC ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Sun Capital Partners ,
Venture Capital ,
Withdrawal Liability
Non-Enforcement -
A Source of Concern for the SEC — The Outsourcing by Investment Advisers and Funds of Compliance Activities -
In a recent National Exam Program Risk Alert (dated November 9, 2015) the U.S....more
Non-Enforcement -
SEC Decides Against Mounting an Appeal in Koch Ruling -
The July 2015 ruling by the D.C. Circuit Court in Koch v. SEC will apparently not be challenged by the SEC. The Court ruled in that...more
11/2/2015
/ Auditors ,
Board of Directors ,
Breach of Duty ,
Cease and Desist Orders ,
Chief Compliance Officers ,
Civil Monetary Penalty ,
Compliance ,
Conflicts of Interest ,
Cyber Threats ,
Cybersecurity ,
Disclosure Requirements ,
Disgorgement ,
Division of Investment Management ,
Dodd-Frank ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Exemptive Orders ,
Fiduciary Duty ,
Fixed Income Investments ,
Guidance Update ,
Investment Adviser ,
Investment Advisers Act of 1940 ,
Investment Companies ,
Investment Company Act of 1940 ,
Investment Management ,
Investor Protection ,
Liquidity Risk Management Rule ,
Meals-Gifts-and Entertainment Rules ,
Mismanagement ,
Money Market Funds ,
Municipal Advisers ,
Mutual Funds ,
NRSRO ,
Popular ,
Prejudgment Interest ,
Private Funds ,
Proposed Regulation ,
Recordkeeping Requirements ,
Registered Investment Advisors ,
Risk Mitigation ,
Sanctions ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Social Media ,
Testimonial Statements ,
Valuation
Non-Enforcement -
Form PF — What Purpose?
SEC registered investment advisers with at least $150 million of assets under management in private funds are required to periodically file Form PF with the SEC. The...more
8/31/2015
/ Alternative Investment Fund Managers Directive (AIFMD) ,
Board of Directors ,
Breach of Duty ,
CFTC ,
Chief Compliance Officers ,
Compliance ,
Conflicts of Interest ,
Dodd-Frank ,
Enforcement ,
Enforcement Actions ,
EU ,
European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA) ,
Excessive Fees ,
Failure To Disclose ,
Fiduciary Duty ,
Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) ,
Form PF ,
FSOC ,
Investment Adviser ,
Investment Advisers Act of 1940 ,
IOSCO ,
Meals-Gifts-and Entertainment Rules ,
Mutual Funds ,
National Private Placement Regimes (NPPR) ,
Penalties ,
Private Funds ,
Risk Management ,
SCOTUS ,
SEC Examination Priorities ,
Section 36(b) ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Transparency ,
UK