The SEC has unanimously proposed new rules to require certain key market participants to have comprehensive policies and procedures in place surrounding their technological systems. The SEC’s proposal called Regulation SCI would replace the current voluntary compliance program with enforceable … Continued
After repeated attempts, the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority has conceded that the House Financial Services Committee is not going to expand FINRA’s powers to include oversight of registered investment advisers.
Has anyone else noticed the increased frequency with which regulators have been communicating with investment advisers? This is occurring on both the federal and state level. While I do applaud their efforts, the indiscriminate nature of the communications tends to … Continued
President Barack Obama has nominated former federal prosecutor Mary Jo White as chairman of the Securities and Exchange Commission. White, who is in private practice, was the first woman to serve as U.S. attorney for the Southern District of New … Continued
The Securities and Exchange Commission today announced the opening of registration for its National Compliance Outreach Program for Broker-Dealers that will take place in Washington D.C. on April 9. The event is sponsored by the SEC’s Office of Compliance Inspections … Continued
The Securities and Exchange Commission says it hasn’t yet determined whether to propose a rule requiring firms to disclose their political activities, but proponents of such a rule say they’re increasingly confident the SEC will issue a recommendation. The rule … Continued
A really helpful list for investment advisers from the SEC Office of Compliance Inspections and Examinations. http://sec.gov/about/offices/ocie/ocie_guidance.shtml
Read your firm’s E & O insurance to make sure it covers what you do in your advisory business. Have a whistleblower policy. Have a pay-to-play policy.
It is interesting that a significant number of the standards imposed on investment advisers today have been developed through the SEC’s institution of enforcement actions rather than through their rulemaking authority under the Advisers Act.
FINRA recently issued guidance stating that it will now accept requests for arbitration on a voluntary, case-by-case basis from investors and investment advisers, provided the parties meet certain conditions. Guidance on Disputes between Investors and Investment Advisers who are not … Continued
House Financial Services Committee Chairman Spencer Bachus, R-Ala., formally introduced a bill on Wednesday that would shift the oversight of investment advisers from the Securities and Exchange Commission to a separate agency – perhaps the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority Inc.
Important tips for advisers on protecting their clients from cybercrime. http://www.investmentnews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20120205/REG/302059988
The Securities and Exchange Commission today announced it is tightening its rule on investment advisory performance fees to raise the net worth requirement for investors who pay performance fees, by excluding the value of the investor’s home from the net … Continued
At the SEC seminar last week, Rosalind Tyson, director of the SEC’s Los Angeles office, said that firms should design compliance programs tailored to their core business activities and then follow through on them. “For heaven’s sake, don’t adopt policies … Continued
Regulatory issues impacting advisers: http://www.investmentnews.com/article/20120201/FREE/120129929
An order by a divided Commission, late Thursday, ended the agency’s controversial action against Theodore Urban, once general counsel of the former Ferris Baker Watts LLC, a Washington, D.C.-based brokerage and investment bank, now part of RBC Wealth Management. See … Continued
20 January 2012 The FBI has observed a trend in which cyber criminals are compromising the e-mail accounts of U.S. individuals and businesses and using variations of the legitimate e-mail addresses associated with the victim accounts to request and authorize … Continued
“Not all compliance failures result in fraud, but many frauds take root in compliance deficiencies,” said Robert Khuzami, Director of the SEC’s Division of Enforcement.
The Securities and Exchange Commission has amended its rules to exclude the value of a person’s home from net worth calculations used to determine whether an individual may invest in certain unregistered securities offerings. The changes were made to conform … Continued
Four groups representing RIAs conducted a joint study which concluded that creating a new self-regulatory organization operated by FINRA would coast at least twice as much as leaving the responsibility to regulate RIAs with the SEC.