Sky Blog
On August 15, the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) issued a regulatory notice adopting a requirement that U.S. registered broker-dealers collect margin on To-Be-Announced (TBA) transactions (FINRA Rule 4210).[1] FINRA’s action follows the Securities and Exchange Commission’s approval of …
On July 6, 2016, the European Parliament officially adopted the Network and Information Security (NIS) Directive[1] which is expected to fully enter into force in May 2018. The NIS Directive is the first set of cybersecurity rules to be …
Insider trading is a serious form of misconduct and can result in defendants receiving lengthy prison sentences and significant monetary sanctions. Our working paper, ‘Sanctions Imposed for Insider Trading in Australia, Canada (Ontario), Hong Kong, Singapore, New Zealand, the …
On August 10, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC” or the “Commission”) announced its second major enforcement action against an employer for using contracts with employees that seek to impede employees from engaging in protected whistleblowing activity. Under rules …
“Culture, more than rule books, determines how an organization behaves.” – Warren Buffet[1]
In recent years, there have been ongoing occurrences of serious professional misbehavior, ethical lapses and compliance failures at financial institutions. It was the crisis that exposed …
On July 13, the Securities and Exchange Commission issued a proposal aimed at eliminating or updating duplicative, overlapping and obsolete disclosure requirements. The proposal is welcome, but largely technical in nature and generally focused on duplicative requirements. As a result, …
As we have previously observed, private fund advisers face a difficult challenge when SEC guidance (in the form of a speech or a public enforcement order) indicates that certain long-standing practices may be contrary to the securities laws. What does …
Despite substantial judicial and public scrutiny, non-prosecution agreements (“NPA”) and deferred prosecution agreements (“DPA”) have retained their prominence as vehicles to resolve complicated corporate investigations, particularly for companies operating in regulatory environments. In the first half of this year, NPAs …
Regulators demand the impossible when they require issuers to design and implement an effective compliance program to guard against insider trading, a crime that neither Congress nor the SEC has defined with any specificity. This problem is then compounded by …
Corporate taxpayers have clear incentives to legally minimize their tax liabilities to the extent that doing so maximizes after-tax returns. Conversely, tax authorities have a clear mandate to ensure that taxpayers meet their tax obligations and enforce tax rules in …
Corporate governance mitigates agency costs by protecting outside investors from exploitation from insiders, as well as aligning the financial and other incentives of insiders with those of the principal. The literature remains underdeveloped, however, on those tasked with shaping and …
On December 1, 2015, the New York Department of Financial Services (the DFS) released a proposed rule that would require certain New York-regulated financial institutions (Regulated Institutions) to comply with enhanced anti-terrorism and anti-money laundering (AML) requirements and subject chief …
The US Federal Reserve (Fed) again expressed concerns about the culture at financial institutions this month.[1] This has been a recurring theme since the financial crisis, as regulators in the US and abroad have hit industry players with steep …
On October 22, 2015, the OCC, the Board of Governors of the US Federal Reserve System, the FDIC, the Farm Credit Administration and the Federal Housing Finance Agency (collectively, the “Agencies”) adopted (i) a joint final rule1 to establish …
Levying record-breaking fines and other punishments, government regulators have maintained a sharp enforcement focus over the past decade on banks and other financial institutions as potential enablers of money laundering activity. The complex web of existing AML laws and accompanying …
On September 22, 2015, the US Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) brought and settled charges against a registered investment adviser (the “RIA”) for violations of the Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act’s “safeguards rule” adopted under Regulation S-P.1 These violations occurred immediately prior …
The SEC recently fined Bank of New York Mellon (“BNY Mellon”) nearly $15 million for allegedly violating provisions of the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (“FCPA”) by providing student internships to family members of foreign government officials in the Middle East.…
The US Department of Justice (DOJ) is creating a new compliance counsel position in the Criminal Division to assess the effectiveness of an entity’s compliance program and help prosecutors decide whether or how to charge an entity under investigation. Public …
Be Careful to Adhere to Best Practices When Approving Advisory Agreements
The Securities and Exchange Commission instituted and settled an administrative proceeding against an investment adviser, its principal, and three independent directors of a registered investment company for process failures …
Compliance is a growth field in both legal education and practice. Overall, whether compliance teaching is geared towards students or individuals within a company, greater care and nuance must be taken in undertaking compliance teaching and training to reflect the …