Ponzi Scheme Seduces Investors for $3.8 Million
A Colorado-based pyramid and Ponzi scheme that boasts returns of 700 percent has been charged with fraud by the U. S. Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”). Since April 2014, Kristin Johnson and Troy Barnes who operated under “The Achieve Community,” … Read More
Core Compliance’s Latest RMU: Valuation – What Investment Advisers Should Know
Last month, Core Compliance & Legal Services, Inc. (“Core Compliance”) published its monthly Risk Management Update (“RMU”), written by Managing Director, Consultation Services, Tina Mitchell. Ms. Mitchell’s RMU, titled Valuation – What Investment Advisers Should Know, provides an overview of … Read More
Cybersecurity Examination Sweep Summary
This week the Office of Compliance Inspections and Examinations (“OCIE”) released its latest Risk Alert: Cybersecurity Examination Sweep Summary. A focused examination of over 100 registered broker-dealers and advisers was conducted to “better understand how broker-dealers and advisers address … Read More
The Big Four: Cybersecurity Tips
It’s no secret that 2014 was the “year of the hacker”. Huge companies like JP Morgan and Apple were the victims of cybersecurity breaches that affected thousands of consumers. In an effort to reduce these attacks, both the Securities … Read More
National Examination Program’s 2015 Priorities
In the last Core Compliance blog post, we highlighted our 2015 Compliance Predictions, shortly before the Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) released the National Examination Program’s priorities for 2015. The list, which is relatively short compared to previous years’, … Read More
2015 Compliance Predictions
Happy New Year! With 2014 behind us and 2015 charging full steam ahead, the Core Compliance team wants to share a few of our 2015 compliance predictions. Increase Use of Technology Based on 2014’s results, we believe the Securities and … Read More
Annual Amendments and Required Updates
Happy New Year! With the new year comes important annual and new filing requirements that are necessary to keep your firm compliant with applicable regulations. With this in mind, we are providing you with a summary of filing deadlines and … Read More
The Dangers of Recidivist Deficiencies and the SEC’s Compliance Program Initiative
December 2014 “In the past few years, the Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) has taken a tougher stance against recidivist behavior by registered investment advisory firms (“RIAs”). Recidivism refers to occurrences where an RIA has not corrected deficiencies noted in … Read More