On Friday, April 5, 2024, a San Francisco jury found the defendant liable in SEC v. Panuwat, the closely watched litigated enforcement action brought by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) relating to so-called...more
While it took a few decades to surface, the fact pattern set forth in the movie “Trading Places” has finally come to pass. However, instead of the alleged wrongdoers bribing a U.S. government official for a sneak peek at...more
Investment Advisers: Assessing Risks, Scoping Examinations, and Requesting Documents*
I. Introduction -
The SEC-registered investment adviser (“adviser”) population is large and diverse, ranging from global asset managers...more
9/12/2023
/ Audits ,
Brokerage Accounts ,
Business Operations ,
Compliance ,
Cybersecurity ,
Disclosure Requirements ,
Ethics ,
Financial Records ,
Insider Trading ,
Internal Controls ,
Investment Adviser ,
Marketing ,
Policies and Procedures ,
Risk Alert ,
Risk Management ,
Securities ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Trading Platforms ,
Valuation
Key Points -
On March 1, 2023, the SEC and DOJ filed insider trading charges against a public company executive alleging he traded pursuant to 10b5-1 trading plans he adopted while he was in possession of material...more
Key Points -
In the wake of the Supreme Court’s “Bridgegate” decision in Kelly v. United States, a divided panel in the 2nd Circuit reversed its prior decision in United States v. Blaszczak, and held that a federal...more
Key Points -
The SEC’s Division of Examinations published a risk alert that, in the context of a focus on MNPI, highlighted observed deficiencies related to the use of alternative data by private fund managers and other...more
Key Points -
The DOJ and CFTC have filed insider trading charges against a Houston-based energy trader for allegedly disclosing confidential information to a third party who then used the information to trade profitably....more
As previously reported, in August 2021, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission filed a complaint in SEC v. Panuwat, initiating the first enforcement action seeking to proscribe as prohibited insider trading the practice...more
Key Points -
The SEC has charged App Annie, Inc. and its former CEO with violations of Section 10(b) of the Exchange Act and Rule 10b-5, which constitute the primary mechanism for enforcing insider trading violations.
This...more
The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission has a long history of adopting novel theories in litigation to convince the courts to expand the scope of the federal insider trading laws.
The SEC's latest effort comes in an...more
8/31/2021
/ Acquisitions ,
Confidential Information ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Insider Trading ,
Material Nonpublic Information ,
Misappropriation ,
Private Funds ,
Rule 10b-5 ,
Scienter ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Securities Fraud
Last week, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission filed a complaint in federal court in California premised on the novel legal theory that the insider trading laws apply where an insider uses confidential information...more
8/25/2021
/ Acquisitions ,
Confidential Information ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Insider Trading ,
Material Nonpublic Information ,
Misappropriation ,
Private Funds ,
Rule 10b-5 ,
Scienter ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Securities Fraud
- Market participants should review and assess their compliance procedures to prevent and detect insider trading risks associated with COVID-19.
- Companies should increase their vigilance regarding cybersecurity threats...more
4/1/2020
/ CFTC ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Cybersecurity ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Financial Crimes ,
Insider Trading ,
Investors ,
Phishing Scams ,
Pump and Dump ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Securities Fraud ,
U.S. Treasury ,
Wire Fraud
Key Points:
The 2nd Circuit has issued a landmark decision for insider trading enforcement that will make it significantly easier for the government to prosecute insider trading in criminal cases.
The decision may also...more
• The CFTC has filed a new “insider trading” enforcement action involving the energy markets—the agency’s third energy market insider trading case since 2015.
• The CFTC also created an Insider Trading and Information...more
10/3/2018
/ Anti-Fraud Provisions ,
Asset Management ,
Breach of Duty ,
CFTC ,
Commodities ,
Confidential Information ,
Electricity ,
Energy Market ,
Energy Sector ,
Enforcement Actions ,
FERC ,
Insider Trading ,
Market Manipulation ,
Natural Gas ,
Oil & Gas ,
Risk Mitigation ,
Securities Fraud
• A divided 2nd Circuit holds that there is no requirement for a “meaningfully close personal relationship” between a tipper and tippee in order for the tipper to reap a personal benefit from the disclosure sufficient to give...more
On December 6, 2016, in an opinion written by Justice Alito, the Supreme Court unanimously affirmed the Ninth Circuit’s decision in Salman v. United States, a closely-watched insider trading tipping case. Salman builds upon...more
As predicted in this previous AG Deal Diary post, the U.S. Supreme Court has granted certiorari in United States v. Salman, No. 14-10204 (9th Cir. July 6), cert. granted (U.S. Jan. 19, 2016), an important insider-trading...more
The 9th Circuit just denied rehearing en banc in a closely watched decision that declined to adopt a broad interpretation of its influential sister circuit’s watershed opinion in United States v. Newman, 773 F.3d 438 (2d Cir....more
A recent decision from the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York allowing a U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) civil enforcement action to proceed against two former stockbrokers for...more
4/23/2015
/ Criminal Prosecution ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Illegal Tipping ,
Insider Trading ,
Judge Rakoff ,
Personal Benefit ,
Quid Pro Quo ,
SEC v Payton ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
US v Newman
In a landmark insider trading decision issued on December 10, 2014, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 2nd Circuit made important pronouncements favorable to the defense on two recurring and important legal issues: (1) what is...more