The Securities and Exchange Commission wants comments on a proposed amendment to the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority’s broker-deal supervision rules. The latter wants to change the rules by consolidating some of them, including NASD Rule 3010 and NASD Rule 3012 into its proposed Rules 3110 and 3120 that have to…
The Securities and Exchange Commission has published answers to frequently asked questions as guidance about liability that may come out of the Exchange Act related to the responsibilities of chief compliance officers and other legal and compliance staff at broker-dealers. The advisory was issued so firms could consider which circumstances…
Beginning today, September 23, the SEC’s ban on general solicitation is no longer in effect. Those raising funds for corporations can now publish equity offerings on websites for crowdfunding, as well as blog and tweet about them. The move comes in the wake of the Jumpstart Our Business Startups Act,…
Lawyers Not Happy About Growing Collaboration Between SEC’s Enforcement and OCIE A number of lawyers have expressed dismay that the collaboration efforts between the Securities and Exchange Commission’s Office of Compliance Inspections and Examinations and its Enforcement Division are increasing. There is concern that examinations are ending up becoming the…
10 Democrats in the US Senate are calling on the Obama Administration to delay a proposal by the Department of Labor involving retirement plan-related investment advice until after the SEC makes a decision over whether to put out its own proposal about retail investment advice. The Commission is looking at…
Bank of America (BAC) and two subsidiaries are now facing SEC charges for allegedly bilking investors in an residential mortgage-backed securities offering that led to close to $70M in losses and about $50 million in anticipated losses in the future. The US Department of Justice also has filed its securities…
The Government Accountability Office is recommending that the SEC look at eight other criteria for who should qualify as an accredited investor for purposes of the 1933 Securities Act Regulation D Rule 506. The criteria is divided into two categories: understanding financial risk and financial resources. The independent, nonpartisan agency…
New York’s highest court has revived a declaratory judgment action against D & Liability insurers after finding that the Securities and Exchange Commission order mandating that Bear Stearns (BSC) pay $160M in disgorgement failed to establish in a conclusive manner that payment could not be insured. The securities lawsuit is…
Securities and Exchange Commission Chairman Mary Jo White recently announced that defendants in certain securities cases would no longer be allowed to accompany an agreement to settle with the statement that they are doing so but without admitting or denying wrongdoing. Speaking to a columnist with The New York Times,…
The Securities and Exchange Commission’s Division of Risk, Strategy and Financial Innovation’s director Craig Lewis wants members of the public to be more proactive about offering information regarding investor-protection related benefits and costs during the rulemaking process. At the Pennsylvania Association of Public Employee Retirement Systems’s spring forum, Lewis said…