The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) initiated 80 enforcement actions against public companies and subsidiaries in fiscal year 2024, marking a 12% decline from FY 2023 but still up nearly 5% compared to the...more
As news stories about AI have surged, so have enforcement actions by the SEC alleging fraudulent statements about AI capabilities....more
On August 7, 2024, the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York permanently enjoined Ripple from future violations of Section 5 of the Securities Act of 1933—that is, from the unregistered offer and sale of...more
In March 2023, the SEC imposed a total monetary settlement of $79.5 million in SEC v. Barksdale et al., of which $56.3 million consisted of disgorgement and prejudgment interest. This was the largest monetary penalty imposed...more
It should come as no surprise that one of the goals of an investment fraud is the theft of customer funds for the scammer’s personal benefit. In legal parlance, this aspect of a fraudulent investment scheme is called...more
Total monetary value of settlements fell to lowest level in last eight fiscal years. The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) filed 91 enforcement actions against public companies and subsidiaries in fiscal year...more
The following is an edited version of a conversation between Goodwin partners Jonathan Hecht and Isaac Vinyarsh. Before joining Goodwin, Jonathan spent more than a decade in the SEC’s Division of Enforcement, including...more
Who may be interested: Registered Investment Advisers. Quick Take: The SEC recently settled charges against an investment adviser (Adviser) and one of the Adviser’s partial owners for breach of fiduciary duty in...more
As of February 9, 2023, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has accused Payward Ventures, Inc. and Payward Trading Ltd, better known as Kraken, of failing to register the sale of their cryptocurrency...more
The SEC announced another FCPA settlement in 2022. FCPA enforcement, in general, is picking up. Tenaris, a global supplier of steel pipes and related services for the energy industry, agreed to pay the SEC $78 million to...more
Former CEO Indicted for Misleading Investors About COVID-19 Test Kits - A federal grand jury in New Jersey indicted Marc Schessel—the former CEO of SCWorx Corp.—on two counts of securities fraud for allegedly misleading...more
SEC Charges Cannabis Pill Company with $2 Million Securities Fraud - On September 28, 2021, the Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) charged a California-based cannabis company C3 International, Inc. (“C3”) and its...more
In our October 2019 update, we discussed how the staff of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has remained sharply focused in recent years on the conflicts of interest related to investment advisers’ selection...more
Cardinal Health Inc. (Cardinal) settled its Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) matter with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) last week. According to the SEC Press Release, Anita B. Bandy, Associate Director in...more
The SEC announced settlements with an auditing firm (the “Firm”) and one of its partners relating to violations of certain auditor independence rules involving nineteen audit engagements with fifteen SEC-registrant issuers. ...more
Last week Juniper Networks, Inc. (JNPR) resolved their long-standing Foreign Corruption Practices Act (FCPA) enforcement action by settling with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) via a Cease and Desist Order...more
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
The big one finally is resolved. The long-awaited Walmart Inc. (Walmart) Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) enforcement action was announced yesterday. This massive case came in with multiple documents, a long list of...more
The Securities and Exchange Commission filed a complaint last week against the founder of venture-backed mobile payments startup Jumio, Inc., charging him with causing the company to prepare false and misleading financial...more
Over the past year, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission has ramped up its scrutiny of cryptocurrencies and other digital token offerings. On Sept. 11, 2018, the SEC escalated its crackdown when it announced a pair of...more
New Rules, Proposed Rules, Guidance and Alerts – SEC STAFF GUIDANCE AND ALERTS - SEC Staff Issues Guidance on Cryptocurrency-related Holdings - On January 18, 2018, the staff of the SEC’s Division of Investment...more
On September 28, 2016, the SEC announced that Anheuser-Busch agreed to pay $6 million to settle charges of Foreign Corrupt Practices Act and Dodd-Frank whistleblower violations. The SEC’s order stated that AB InBev violated...more
Just in time for National Beveridge Day comes the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) enforcement action involving Anheuser-Busch InBev (ABI), where the company paid $6 million to settle charges that it violated the FCPA and...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
Phil Mickelson, whom the SEC describes as a “successful professional golfer,” was not charged with insider trading earlier today. I wasn’t either, and I’m glad about that. And you probably weren’t either! High fives all...more