Pair of Advisers Fined for Failing to Disclose Interest in Publicly Traded Company WHAT HAPPENED? On Sept. 24, 2019, the Securities and Exchange Commission released information that a registered investment adviser, Strategic Planning Group, and its principals, David Rourke and Jarrod Sherman, were charged for failing to disclose conflicts of interest to [...]
Company Charged with Violating Regulation ATS After Releasing Confidential Information WHAT HAPPENED? On Sept. 24, 2019, the Securities and Exchange Commission released information that TMC Bonds LLC, operator of an alternative trading system (ATS), will pay $2.1 million after being charged for failing to protect confidential information in violation [...]
OCIE Releases List of Common Principal and Agency Cross Trading Compliance Issues WHAT HAPPENED? On Sept. 4, 2019, the Office of Compliance Inspections and Examinations of the Securities and Exchange Commission issued a Risk Alert regarding common principal and agency cross trading compliance concerns. Principal and agency cross trading [...]
New SEC Guidance on Proxy Voting Process: What You Should Know WHAT HAPPENED? On Aug. 21, 2019, the US Securities and Exchange Commission released guidance on the proxy voting process. The guidance primarily outlines considerations advisers should make when choosing to begin or continue working with a proxy advisory [...]
Alleged Cryptocurrency Scam Serves as Reminder of Digital Assets Risks WHAT HAPPENED? On Aug. 13, 2019, the Securities and Exchange Commission issued a press release regarding charges against Reginald “Reggie” Middleton and his two companies, Veritaseum, Inc. and Veritaseum, LLC. The complaint, filed in Brooklyn, New York, alleges that [...]
SEC Charges Investment Adviser and His 90-Year-Old Father with Breaching Fiduciary Duty After Taking Advantage of Elderly Client WHAT HAPPENED? On July 19, 2019, the US Securities and Exchange Commission charged a registered investment adviser, Account Management LLC, with breaching their fiduciary duty to their largest client, a 92-year-old [...]
Alaska Investment Adviser Ordered to Pay Over $400K in SEC Settlement WHAT HAPPENED? On July 24, 2019, the US Securities and Exchange Commission released a settlement with an Alaska investment adviser, which was penalized for its failure to properly disclose compensation conflicts to clients. Foundations Assets Management (FAM) and [...]
OCIE Releases Findings After Examining Firms Employing Persons with Disciplinary Histories WHAT HAPPENED? On July 23, 2019, the Office of Compliance Inspections and Examinations (OCIE) released a Risk Alert which outlines the findings of examinations of over 50 advisers in 2017. All the examined advisers were selected based on [...]
How are Advisers Selected for an OCIE Exam? WHAT HAPPENED? In Fiscal Year 2018, the Office of Compliance Inspections and Examinations of the Securities and Exchange Commission examined nearly 17% of SEC-registered investment advisers. For the past several years, the number of examinations performed annually has steadily increased and [...]
SEC Accepts Public Comment on Private Securities Offering Exemptions WHAT HAPPENED? Last month, the Securities and Exchange Commission released a request for public comment on how to improve the current exempt offering structure. Through this process, the Commission is seeking to broaden opportunities for investment while continuing to protect [...]