The Importance of Effectively Monitoring Gifts & Entertainment – Part 3: Pay-To-Play
Another rule that firms must be mindful of in monitoring is the SEC’s, Pay-to-Play Rule. The Rule is designed to prevent investment advisers (IAs) from obtaining governmental business, through direct or indirect campaign contributions made by certain high-level employees to … Read More
The Importance of Effectively Monitoring Gifts and Entertainment – Part 2: LMRDA
Advisory firms continue to monitor gifts and entertainment by reviewing all statutory and regulatory requirements, one of which is the reporting requirements of the Labor-Management Reporting and Disclosure Act of 1959 (“LMRDA”). Firms may be subject to the LMRDA as … Read More
The Importance of Effectively Monitoring Gifts and Entertainment – Part 1: ERISA
Gifts and entertainment can establish goodwill between securities professionals and their clients. However, some gifts and entertainment benefits can be too frequent or so excessive as to give rise to an appearance of improper influence. To prevent improprieties, governmental agencies … Read More
FINRA Drops Bid to be SRO for Registered Investment Advisors, For Now
Over the last couple of years, FINRA has spent nearly $5 million lobbying to become the primary regulator for registered investment advisers (“RIA”). However, Richard G. Ketchum chief executive of FINRA has stated that FINRA will no longer aggressively seek … Read More
Chief of SEC Enforcement Speaks About the Concerns and Initiatives of Private Fund Advisers
In a recent speech at the Private Equity International Conference in New York, Bruce Karpati, Chief of the Securities and Exchange Commission’s (“SEC”) Enforcement Division’s Asset Management Unit, addressed private equity enforcement concerns. While the SEC has not traditionally brought … Read More
FINRA Issues Exam Priorities for 2013
On January 11, 2013, the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) released its exam priorities list that it will focus on during its routine examinations this year. As investors continue to seek attractive returns, FINRA highlighted its intent to focus on … Read More
Public Reporting of Swap Transactions and Swap Dealer Registration Began December 31, 2012
On December 31, 2012, registered swap dealers (SDs) and designated contract markets (DCMs) began reporting swap transaction and pricing data to registered swap data repositories (SDRs). The reporting deadline has been divided between different asset classes. Effective December 31, 2012, … Read More
Broker Dealers Will Soon Be Required To Search For Lost Securityholders
On December 21, 2012, the Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) unanimously approved a Draft Final Rule requiring broker-dealers to conduct searches for holders of securities with whom they have lost contact. A similar rule already applies to recordkeeping transfer agents, … Read More