Ever notice how impressive titles are thrown around in the field of investments? Just what, if anything, to these mean. The Washington State Securities Division has proposed that that anyone who uses a professional designation that connotes some type financial planning expertise should fulfill the requirements and register as an…
UBS Financial Services, Inc. will pay $23.3 million to settle charges by New York’s Attorney General of “inappropriately steering” of brokerage customers into fee-based accounts. The NYAG said that under the agreement UBS will pay a $2 million fine and $21.3 million to approximately 3,000 customers it inappropriately placed in…
The Securities and Exchange Commission has published a 121-page proposal for dropping the requirement that non-U.S. companies reconcile to the generally accepted accounting principles (GAAP) as required by U.S. firms in financial reports. The proposal would apply to foreign private issuers that file financial statements to comply with the English…
Morgan Stanley & Co. Inc. agreed to pay a $250,000 civil penalty to end claims by Rhode Island Regulators that it failed to supervise sales representatives who engaged in unethical and dishonest practices in the sale of mutual funds and variable annuities. According to the director of the Rhode Island…
On June 11, 2007, we published an article entitled “Should Brokerage Firms Continue to Vote Their Clients’ Shares without Permission, Including for Corporate Directors?” State Treasurer Richard Moore of North Carolina has recently answered that question with a resounding “No!” In a statement, Moore contends that allowing such votes thwarts…
NASD and NYSE regulators, which will soon merge, jointly released proposed guidance for broker-dealers to establish policies and procedures on electronic communications employees use to conduct business and to “take reasonable steps” to monitor such compliance. The two securities self-regulatory organizations (SRO’s) stated that brokerage firms should have a supervisory…
The New York Stock Exchange Regulation Inc. announced that RBC Dain Rauscher Inc. consented to be fined $90,000 for failures related to its anti-money laundering compliance program. According to an exchange press release, the Minneapolis-based firm failed to establish written procedures regarding filing of suspicious activity reports. Additionally, the exchange…
The North American Securities Administrators Association released its “Top 10 Traps” likely to ensnare investors, a list that included real estate investment contracts, affinity fraud, foreign exchange trading, and Internet fraud. Other problematic areas, according to NASAA, include: “free lunch” investment seminars; oil and gas scams; prime bank schemes; private…
William F. Galvin, Head of the Massachusetts Securities Division, declared war against deceptive financial advisers who prey on senior citizens. Massachusetts became the first state in the nation to adopt regulations governing brokers or advisers who use credentials or professional designations suggesting expertise in advising senior citizens on financial matters.…
Morgan Stanley & Co. Inc., the world’s second largest securities firm, will pay $7.9 million for its failure to provide best execution to certain retail orders for over-the-counter securities, the Securities and Exchange Commission announced today. Morgan Stanley embedded undisclosed mark-ups and mark-downs on certain retail OTC orders processed by…