PODCAST: Williams Mullen's Raising Capital 101: A Securities Podcast - What Makes it a Securities Offering?
All Things Investigations: Anchored in Fraud: Mike DeBernardis and Shayda Vance on Austal USA’s Scandal
The Legal Tightrope: Surviving Parallel Investigations
Navigating Government Contracts: Diana Shaw on Oversight and Whistleblower Protections
From Court to Code: Smart Contracts and Arbitration
Episode 335 -- The New DOJ Whistleblower Program
Navigating Emerging Privacy Issues in Financial Services — The Consumer Finance Podcast
Implications of the SEC Cybersecurity Disclosure Rule
Corruption, Crime and Compliance: SEC Suffers Dismissal of Claims in Solarwinds Securities Fraud Case
Episode 334 -- District Court Dismisses Bulk of SEC Claims Against Solarwinds
The Woody Report: The Solar Winds Dismissal
In That Case: Securities and Exchange Commission v. Jarkesy
Corruption, Crime and Compliance: Deep Dive into The SEC’s Settlement with R&R Donnelly on Cybersecurity Controls
Episode 332 -- Deep Dive into SEC’s Internal Controls and Cybersecurity Settlement with R&R Donnelly
The Justice Insiders Podcast: Jarkesy’s Implications for the Administrative State
DE Under 3: OFCCP Must Shut Down its Administrative Court Prosecutions as a Result of SCOTUS’ SEC Jury Trial Case Decision
Dogecoin’s Day in Court
Unpacking the Lummis-Gillibrand Payment Stablecoin Act: Implications for the Digital Asset Industry — The Crypto Exchange Podcast
Podcast: Is Cryptocurrency a Security (like an orange grove)?
Navigating the Regulatory Waters: The SEC's Wells Notice to Uniswap and its Impact on DeFi — The Crypto Exchange Podcast
For one of our authors, their kids’ current favorite treat is a chocolate bar sold by a popular YouTube personality (and philanthropist!). The kids know about this particular chocolate bar because the personality promotes it...more
In the all-encompassing age of social media, a new breed of influencers has emerged — FINfluencers (financial influencers). These individuals leverage their significant number of followers on social mediaon platforms such as...more
The Securities and Exchange Commission announced an upcoming meeting of its Investor Advisory Committee, which will be held on June 6, 2024. The agenda includes a number of interesting topics....more
Welcome to the latest issue of Bracewell’s FINRA Facts and Trends, a monthly newsletter devoted to condensing and digesting recent FINRA developments in the areas of enforcement, regulation and dispute resolution. This month,...more
FINRA, as part of its targeted exam of member firms’ social media practices for gaining new customers, recently announced an $850,000 fine against M1 Finance LLC (“M1 Finance”) stemming from promotional social media posts...more
The Nutter Securities Enforcement Update is a periodic update of noteworthy recent securities enforcement activity, settlements, decisions, and charges. We provide brief summaries that highlight recent enforcement action...more
On March 18, 2024, FINRA announced that it has fined a broker-dealer $850,000 in connection with the firm’s program to pay individuals with followings on social media sites (i.e., “influencers”) to promote the firm in social...more
Who may be interested: Investment Advisers; Registered Investment Companies; Boards of Directors - Quick Take: The SEC recently settled charges with an investment adviser relating to the adviser’s alleged failure to...more
A recent settlement announced by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) highlights the risks of using social media influencers when marketing investments. It also underscores recent SEC scrutiny on the use of index...more
Financial regulators in the United Kingdom, European Union, and United States are proposing new rules to regulate how financial products are promoted on social media platforms. There is a particular focus on financial...more
Securities products and social media don’t always mix. Just ask any of the celebrities who in recent years have faced SEC charges for unlawfully touting crypto asset securities. In March, the SEC settled charges against six...more
Hosted by American Conference Institute, the 13th West Coast Forum on FCPA Enforcement and Compliance returns for another exciting year, providing the opportunity to connect with decision-makers from your industry, gather...more
The world’s ever-changing technological landscape has led to the formation of new mediums of creativity — mediums that the sports and entertainment industry cannot ignore. Digital currencies, virtual universes, and enhanced...more
This season of Explainer Things is progressing nicely, don’t you think? We’ve introduced our recurring characters, like cryptocurrency, data privacy, and CFPB Director Rohit Chopra. We’ve established the tone – lighthearted...more
In February, FINRA provided an update (Update) concerning the targeted exam (Sweep) launched in September 2021 to review firms’ practices concerning customer acquisition through social media channels and the way firms share...more
Former NBA player and Hall of Famer Paul Pierce is the latest celebrity cryptocurrency promoter to get caught in the net of the anti-touting provisions of federal securities laws. In a recent settled order issued by the SEC,...more
CYBERSECURITY - LastPass Updates Disclosure of Security Incident - There are pros and cons to using a password manager. The biggest pro is that it helps keep all of our passwords organized and safe. The biggest con is...more
The Justice Department and the Security and Exchange Commission (SEC) have charged eight men of using their social media clout to manipulate investors in a stock pump-and-dump scheme. The defendants allegedly took to Twitter...more
On December 14, 2022, the Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC” or the “Commission”) announced charges against eight social media influencers in a $100 million securities fraud scheme, alleging that they manipulated the...more
Influencers and their large and impressionable followings have become a valuable marketing tool for brands big and small. However, brands and influencers alike should proceed with caution as regulators continue to scrutinize...more
On October 3, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) issued a press release in which it announced that it had reached a settlement in an investigation involving celebrity influencer Kim Kardashian for touting a crypto...more
The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) settled with Kim Kardashian over allegations she violated Section 17(b) of the Securities Act (the “Act”) by publishing an Instagram post promoting the crypto-currency, EthereumMax...more
One of the key complaints about the SEC by crypto enthusiasts is that the line between which crypto coins are securities and which are not is unclear. Many, for example, look at a coin and are puzzled – when is it a...more
Back in August, we flagged that the U.S. Securities Exchange Commission’s (SEC) enforcement action against crypto influencers who promoted Forsage, a USD300 million crypto Ponzi scheme (link), demonstrated that the SEC would...more
In these difficult financial times, some of us may turn to our financial advisors for advice. Others may turn to Kim Kardashian. If you fall into the latter category, you may have seen that last year, Ms. Kardashian posted a...more