...A recent decision in an SEC enforcement action against Coinbase, the largest crypto-asset trading platform in the U.S., provides some long-awaited guidance on a topic that has been the subject of considerable debate in the...more
The SEC charged fifteen individuals with acting as unregistered brokers or aiding-and-abetting such activity in connection with Intertech Solutions, Inc.’s fraudulent and unregistered securities offerings....more
The Internal Revenue Service has published Notice 2018-68 (the “Notice”), which provides long awaited, but limited guidance on the recent amendments to Section 162(m) of the Internal Revenue Code (“Section 162(m)”) by the Tax...more
On December 22, 2017, the tax reform bill, informally known as the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (the “Act”), was signed by President Trump. As we noted in our prior OnPoint (available here) with respect to earlier versions of the...more
Regulators Demand Third-Party Risk Management - While third-party risk management has been a required component of an effective enterprise risk management program for many years, the topic is receiving elevated attention...more
The SEC’s Division of Investment Management issued a no-action letter on January 11, 2017 explicitly permitting brokers to set their own commission rates for sales of so-called “clean shares” of mutual funds. Previously, as...more
SEC Issues Guidance on Mutual Fund Fee Structure - The Securities and Exchange Commission’s (SEC) Division of Investment Management recently issued a guidance update addressing disclosure issues and certain procedural...more
The emissions cheating scandal that recently cost VW $4.3 billion and a mess of criminal indictments isn’t, it seems, confined to the Germans. We heard months ago about a similar probe into Mitsubishi, and yesterday we...more
You know this has been a big year in FCPA enforcement when DOJ and the SEC announce two FCPA settlements during the usually sleepy week between Christmas and New Years. And what a year it has been – more to follow in my...more
Today we celebrate innovation. On this day in 1873, a patent to create work pants reinforced with metal rivets was granted. This marked the birth of one of the world’s most famous garments: the blue jeans. Jacob Davis, a...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
Your good client, Avery Phillips, Chairman of the Board, calls you because he is considering engaging a friend, Tepper, to identify potential investors for his company. Phillips explains that Tepper has extensive business...more