The SEC prevailed on two summary judgment motions. One centered on a manipulation action. The other was against an attorney who facilitated a prime bank fraud.
The Commission also filed: An action against UBS tied to its...more
10/16/2015
/ Administrative Proceedings ,
Australia ,
Bank Fraud ,
Board of Directors ,
Broker-Dealer ,
Cease and Desist Orders ,
Corporate Governance ,
Crisis Management ,
Disclosure Requirements ,
Disgorgement ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Fraud ,
Hong Kong ,
Insider Trading ,
Investment Advisers Act of 1940 ,
Investment Funds ,
Market Manipulation ,
Misappropriation ,
Misrepresentation ,
PCAOB ,
Penalties ,
Permanent Injunctions ,
Pump and Dump ,
Registered Investment Advisors ,
Risk Management ,
Securities Act of 1933 ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Securities Exchange Act ,
Securities Fraud ,
Securities Litigation ,
Serious Fraud Office (SFO) ,
Shareholders ,
UK
In a burst of post-Labor Day energy, the SEC filed a number of significant actions. Those include a series of actions arising out of the audit failure by BDO; actions centered on a financial fraud at an on-line lender; cases...more
9/11/2015
/ Advertising ,
Audits ,
CFTC ,
Consumer Lenders ,
Disclosure Requirements ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Executive Compensation ,
False Advertising ,
Financial Institutions ,
Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) ,
Foreign Official ,
Fraud ,
Insider Trading ,
Investment Adviser ,
Investment Funds ,
Misrepresentation ,
Offering Fraud ,
PCAOB ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Securities Fraud ,
Unregistered Securities
The Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform Act imposed a requirement on the SEC in Section 1504 to promulgate a disclosure rule regarding certain extraction payments involving resource issuers within 270 days of passage or by April...more
9/8/2015
/ Administrative Procedure Act ,
American Petroleum Institute ,
Disclosure Requirements ,
Dodd-Frank ,
Injunctions ,
Mineral Extraction ,
Multi-Factor Test ,
Oil & Gas ,
Resource Extraction ,
Rulemaking Process ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC)
The Sixth Circuit last week concluded that Morrison, which held that Section 10(b) does not have extraterritorial reach, is inapplicable to Advisers Act Section 10(b). The DC Circuit, on rehearing, reaffirmed its prior...more
8/28/2015
/ Appeals ,
Charles Schwab ,
Conflict Mineral Rules ,
Disclosure Requirements ,
Dodd-Frank ,
EB-5 ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Extraterritoriality Rules ,
False Statements ,
Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) ,
First Amendment ,
Fraud ,
Insider Trading ,
Investment Adviser ,
Misappropriation ,
NAM ,
NAM v SEC ,
Net Capital Rule ,
Offering Fraud ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC)
The SEC’s conflict mineral disclosure rule, enacted under Dodd-Frank, is a continuing source of controversy. An initial challenge to the rules was brought by the National Association of Manufactures. That challenge was...more
The Commission has brought a series of cases focused on undisclosed conflicts of regulated entities. A number of those cases centered on undisclosed fee and compensation arrangements. In its most recent case the agency went...more
The SEC filed its first action involving a private equity fund and broken deal expenses. By the time the Commission discovered the question the firm realized it did not have a disclosure policy, retained a consultant to study...more
Microcap fraud, misappropriation by investment advisers and offering fraud cases were the focus of SEC enforcement this week. The Commission filed a microcap fraud action centered on blank check companies involving ten...more
4/17/2015
/ CFTC ,
Congressional Investigations & Hearings ,
Disclosure Requirements ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Investment Adviser ,
Mary Jo White ,
Misappropriation ,
PCAOB ,
Securities ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Securities Fraud ,
Securities Litigation ,
Serious Fraud Office (SFO)
The “broken windows” approach to enforcement is alive, well and continuing. This time the Commission bundled together three groups of actions and eight proceedings, all centered on a failure to update disclosures tied to...more
Barclays took a double hit from regulators yesterday. First the Financial Conduct Authority in the UK fined Barclays Bank Plc, about £38 million for putting £16.5 billion of client assets at risk. Then the SEC imposed a $15...more
9/24/2014
/ Banks ,
Barclays ,
Corporate Fines ,
Custody Rule ,
Disclosure Requirements ,
Fees ,
Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) ,
Fines ,
Internal Controls ,
Investment Advisers Act of 1940 ,
Sales Commissions ,
Sanctions ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
UK
The SEC continued with its “broken windows” approach to enforcement this week, filing a group of 34 actions based on the failure to file either a Form 4, Schedule 13D or Schedule 13G. The agency also filed an action alleging...more
The SEC’s nationwide review of municipal bond disclosures yielded another enforcement action, this time against the state of Kanas. The Order centers on claims that the state failed to disclose its huge unfunded pension...more
The SEC settled its first action under the Municipalities Continuing Disclosure Cooperation Initiative, launched on March 10, 2014. Under the Initiative the Enforcement Division agreed to recommend settlement on favorable,...more
Hedge funds are a continuing focus for the SEC. This week the Commission filed an action against two fund managers and an adviser alleging that they fabricated performance reports furnished to investors. The Court granted a...more