In an April 2, 2020 statement regarding the SEC’s approach to the allocation of resources, oversight and rulemaking in light of the COVID-19 coronavirus, SEC Chairman Jay Clayton discussed Regulation Best Interest (Reg BI)...more
The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission has proposed amendments to Rule 206(4)-1 – Advertisements by Investment Advisers (Current Advertising Rule) and Rule 206(4)-3 – Cash Payments for Client Solicitations (Current...more
2/3/2020
/ Advertising ,
Cash Solicitation Rule ,
Form ADV ,
Institutional Investors ,
Investment Adviser ,
Investment Advisers Act of 1940 ,
Proposed Amendments ,
Publicly-Traded Companies ,
Recordkeeping Requirements ,
Retail Investors ,
SEC Advertising Rule ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Securities Regulation
Massachusetts’ Secretary of the Commonwealth, William F. Galvin, caused the Securities Division to issue, on November 29, 2019, a revised proposed uniform standard of conduct for broker-dealers, investment advisers, and their...more
1/3/2020
/ Blue Sky Laws ,
Broker-Dealer ,
Conflicts of Interest ,
Duty of Loyalty ,
Federal v State Law Application ,
Fiduciary Duty ,
Investment Adviser ,
Preemption ,
Proposed Rules ,
Public Hearing ,
Registered Investment Advisors ,
Regulation Best Interest ,
Standard of Conduct ,
State Securities Regulators
The Enforcement Division (Division) of the Securities and Exchange Commission released its Annual Report on November 6, 2019, summarizing the year’s enforcement activity. It was a record-setting year for the Division due to...more
12/3/2019
/ Annual Reports ,
Appointments Clause ,
Asset Management ,
Civil Monetary Penalty ,
Conflicts of Interest ,
Corporate Executives ,
Cybersecurity ,
Disgorgement ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Financial Institutions ,
Initial Coin Offering (ICOs) ,
Investment Adviser ,
Investment Companies ,
Investor Protection ,
Kokesh v SEC ,
Lucia v SEC ,
Publicly-Traded Companies ,
Restitution ,
SCOTUS ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Self-Reporting ,
Share Class Selection Disclosure Initiative (SCSD) ,
Statute of Limitations ,
Suspensions & Debarments ,
Whistleblowers
The staff of the SEC’s Office of Compliance Inspections and Examinations (Staff) issued a Risk Alert on July 23, 2019, in which the Staff shared observations from its “Supervision Initiative” that “assess[ed] the oversight...more
The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, on June 5, 2019, voted 3-1 in favor of adopting a package of rules, amendments and interpretations (Final Rules) intended to improve the retail investor experience and to provide...more
6/12/2019
/ Best Interest Standard ,
Broker-Dealer ,
Compliance ,
Compliance Dates ,
Conflicts of Interest ,
Disclosure Requirements ,
Duty of Care ,
Duty of Loyalty ,
Fiduciary Duty ,
Form CRS ,
Investment Adviser ,
Investment Advisers Act of 1940 ,
New Rules ,
Regulation Best Interest ,
Retail Investors ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Standard of Conduct
The Securities and Exchange Commission announced on March 11, 2019 that it had settled charges against 79 investment advisers in connection with its Share Class Selection Disclosure Initiative (SCSD Initiative). This...more
4/11/2019
/ Asset Management ,
Civil Monetary Penalty ,
Conflicts of Interest ,
Disclosure Requirements ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Investment Adviser ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Self-Reporting ,
Share Class Selection Disclosure Initiative (SCSD) ,
Share Class Structures ,
Share Classes ,
SIFMA
The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission’s Office of Compliance Inspections and Examinations (OCIE) issued a National Exam Program Risk Alert on December 14, 2018 concerning the use of electronic messaging by registered...more
1/25/2019
/ Books & Records ,
Bring Your Own Device (BYOD) ,
Commercial Electronic Messages ,
Compliance ,
Data Security ,
Electronic Communications ,
Employee Training ,
Investment Adviser ,
Investment Advisers Act of 1940 ,
OCIE ,
Policies and Procedures ,
Risk Alert ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Supervision ,
Third-Party
In connection with the public roundtable on the proxy voting process (Roundtable) held by the staff of the Securities and Exchange Commission on November 15, 2018, the staff of the SEC’s Division of Investment Management (IM...more
12/19/2018
/ Conflicts of Interest ,
Corporate Governance ,
Due Diligence ,
Glass Lewis ,
Influencers ,
Institutional Shareholder Services (ISS) ,
Investment Adviser ,
Investment Advisers Act of 1940 ,
No-Action Letters ,
Policies and Procedures ,
Proxy Advisory Firms ,
Proxy Voting ,
Proxy Voting Guidelines ,
Publicly-Traded Companies ,
Roundtable ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Withdrawal
The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission’s Office of Compliance Inspections and Examinations issued a National Exam Program Risk Alert on July 11, 2018. The Risk Alert highlights OCIE’s observations of compliance issues...more
8/3/2018
/ Best Execution ,
Broker-Dealer ,
Compliance ,
Disclosure Requirements ,
Fiduciary Duty ,
Form ADV ,
Investment Adviser ,
Investment Advisers Act of 1940 ,
OCIE ,
Risk Alert ,
SEC Examination Priorities ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC)
The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission on April 18, 2018 published a package of proposed rules and interpretations intended to improve the retail investor experience and to provide greater clarity regarding customers’...more
7/11/2018
/ Best Interest Standard ,
Broker-Dealer ,
Comment Period ,
Conflicts of Interest ,
Disclosure Requirements ,
Due Diligence ,
Fiduciary Duty ,
Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) ,
Financial Services Industry ,
Investment Adviser ,
Investment Products ,
Proposed Rules ,
Regulatory Oversight ,
Retail Investors ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Standard of Care
On April 18, 2018, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) voted 4-1 to propose a package of rules and interpretations (Proposals) intended to improve the retail investor experience and to provide greater clarity...more
4/20/2018
/ 401k ,
Best Interest Standard ,
Broker-Dealer ,
Comment Period ,
Conflicts of Interest ,
Department of Labor (DOL) ,
Disclosure Requirements ,
EDGAR ,
Fiduciary Duty ,
Fiduciary Rule ,
Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) ,
Form ADV ,
Investment Adviser ,
Investment Advisers Act of 1940 ,
Proposed Regulation ,
Retail Investors ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Securities Exchange Act ,
Standard of Care
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit on March 15, 2018 issued an opinion (Opinion) vacating the Department of Labor (DOL) fiduciary rule and related applicable exemptions. The DOL had promulgated the rule and...more
4/18/2018
/ Appeals ,
Best Interest Standard ,
Broker-Dealer ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Department of Labor (DOL) ,
Dodd-Frank ,
Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) ,
Fiduciary Duty ,
Fiduciary Rule ,
Financial Services Industry ,
Internal Revenue Code (IRC) ,
Investment Adviser ,
Mutual Funds ,
Petition For Rehearing ,
Retirement Funds ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Vacated
Although the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) staff is currently drafting proposed rules relating to the standard of conduct for broker-dealers and investment advisers, several states have decided not to wait for...more
4/4/2018
/ Best Interest Contract Exemptions ,
Broker-Dealer ,
Department of Labor (DOL) ,
Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) ,
Fiduciary Duty ,
Fiduciary Rule ,
Financial Planning ,
Investment Adviser ,
Popular ,
Retirement Funds ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
State and Local Government
The Division of Enforcement (Division) of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) on February 12, 2018, announced a Share Class Selection Disclosure Initiative (SCSD Initiative). Led by the Division’s Asset...more
3/7/2018
/ Conflicts of Interest ,
Disclosure Requirements ,
Enforcement Guidance ,
Fees ,
Fiduciary Duty ,
Form ADV ,
Investment Adviser ,
Investment Advisers Act of 1940 ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Self-Reporting ,
Share Class Selection Disclosure Initiative (SCSD) ,
Share Classes
The October 1, 2017 compliance date for the amendments to Form ADV and to rule 204-2 (Recordkeeping Rule), as well as technical amendments to other rules under the Investment Advisers Act of 1940 (Advisers Act) (collectively,...more
The staff of the Division of Investment Management (Staff) of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) released three related matters of guidance on February 21, 2017, which provide additional clarity to...more
The staff of the Division of Investment Management (Staff) of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) published a Guidance Update (Guidance) on February 23, 2017, on the subject of automated investment advisers...more
3/15/2017
/ Compliance ,
Disclosure Requirements ,
Division of Investment Management ,
Guidance Update ,
Investment Adviser ,
Investment Advisers Act of 1940 ,
Investment Companies ,
Investment Management ,
OCIE ,
Policies and Procedures ,
Registered Investment Advisors ,
Robo-Advisors ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC)
The Office of Compliance Inspections and Examinations (OCIE) of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) issued a National Exam Program Risk Alert on February 7, 2017 (Risk Alert), highlighting the “five compliance...more
Investment advisers registered with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) may use a variety of business and organizational models, which may include structures with one or more branch offices. In announcing its...more
The U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) issued in April 2016 the final version of its controversial “investment advice” regulation and various related exemptions (collectively, Final Rules), which are widely expected to have a...more
11/18/2016
/ Annuities ,
Asset Management ,
Best Interest Contract Exemptions ,
Broker-Dealer ,
Compensation Agreements ,
Department of Labor (DOL) ,
Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) ,
Fiduciary Duty ,
Fiduciary Rule ,
Final Rules ,
Financial Services Industry ,
Internal Revenue Code (IRC) ,
Investment Adviser ,
Retirement Plan
The Office of Compliance Inspections and Examinations (OCIE) of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) issued a National Exam Program Risk Alert on October 24, 2016 (Risk Alert) regarding examinations of...more
10/28/2016
/ Amended Regulation ,
Broker-Dealer ,
Compliance ,
Dodd-Frank ,
Investment Adviser ,
OCIE ,
Risk Alert ,
SEC Examination Priorities ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Securities Exchange Act ,
Securities Violations ,
Whistleblower Awards ,
Whistleblower Protection Policies
The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) recently adopted amendments to Form ADV and to Rule 204-2 (Recordkeeping Rule), as well as technical amendments to other rules under the Investment Advisers Act of 1940...more
9/16/2016
/ Chief Compliance Officers ,
Derivatives ,
Dodd-Frank ,
Final Rules ,
Form ADV ,
Investment Adviser ,
Investment Advisers Act of 1940 ,
RAUM ,
Recordkeeping Requirements ,
Required Forms ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
SMAs ,
Social Media ,
Special Purpose Entities ,
Umbrella Registration
A U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) no-action letter issued on April 25, 2016 provides relief from the annual surprise audit requirement of the “Custody Rule” for a registered investment adviser (RIA)...more