Columbia Law School
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Good morning. This is an open meeting of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission on December 9, 2020, under the Government in the Sunshine Act. The Commission today will consider a staff recommendation to adopt amendments to Regulation NMS to
SEC
Insider Trading and Strategic Disclosure
With COVID-19 cases rising rapidly around the world, Pfizer’s announcement on November 9, 2020, that its coronavirus vaccine was highly effective in early trials offered a rare bright spot for the coming winter.[1] But the news was soon dampened …
O’Melveny & Myers Discusses the SEC’s Most Recent No-Action Letter on Digital Assets
On Wednesday, November 18, 2020, the staff of the Division of Corporation Finance (the “Division”) of the Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC” or the “Commission”) took another step forward for crypto regulation by granting a no-action letter to IMVU, Inc. …
Morgan Lewis Discusses SEC Guidance on Disclosure for China-Based Issuers
The SEC Division of Corporation Finance has provided its views regarding certain disclosure considerations for companies based in or with the majority of their operations in the People’s Republic of China.
The US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) recognizes the …
Biden and the SEC: Some Possible Agendas
This is the gossip season, and almost everyone has heard a rumor about who will be the next chair of the SEC. Although I was interviewed by the Biden transition team (for my views, not as a candidate), my sources …
Financial Regulators Offer Update on Audit Quality in Emerging Markets
Over the past several years, the exposure of U.S. investors and our capital markets to companies with significant operations in emerging markets, including China, has increased.[1] This increased exposure carries with it a number of significant risks and challenges,
Crypto-Enforcement Around the World
The market for cryptoassets is burgeoning, as distributed ledger technology transforms capital and financial markets. With the extraordinary growth in the crypto-markets comes the need for regulation to promote efficiency, capital formation, and innovation while protecting investors. With the need …
Enforcement Against the Biggest Banks
My article, Enforcement Against the Biggest Banks, takes a census of the hundreds of enforcement actions by American regulators against the world’s largest banks between the passage of Dodd-Frank in July 2010 and December 31, 2016, near the end …
Chairman Clayton Speaks on Putting Principles into Practice: the SEC from 2017-2020
It is wonderful to be back with the Economic Club of New York. You are a sophisticated, experienced, outcome-oriented, tough and fair audience, interested in economic and wage growth and improving our society more generally. Just the way it should
Beyond “Going Dark:” The SEC’s 13F Proposal and Hedge Fund Activism
This past summer, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) proposed eliminating quarterly disclosures for 90 percent of institutional investment managers by raising the reporting threshold under Section 13F of the Exchange Act from $100 million to $3.5 billion. The proposal …
SEC Chair Speaks on Simplifying Exempt Offering Framework
Today [November 2] we consider a recommendation from the Division of Corporation Finance that would harmonize, simplify and improve various structural and procedural aspects of our exempt offering framework under the Securities Act of 1933. The recommended amendments reflect a
SEC Chair Clayton Speaks on Regulations for Funds’ Use of Derivatives
Today [October 28], we are considering a new rule to provide an updated and comprehensive regulatory framework for the use of derivatives by registered investment funds, including mutual funds and exchange traded funds (ETFs). I have spoken before on the
SEC Officials Issue Joint Statement on Complex Financial Products and Retail Investors
Retail investors have a wide array of investment options available to them, including an increasing number and type of investment products that are more complex than conventional stock and bond investments.[1] These complex products may be exchange-traded or sold
SEC Chairman Clayton Addresses Regulation Best Interest and Form CRS
Good afternoon and welcome to the SEC’s Staff Roundtable on Regulation Best Interest and Form CRS.[1] We hope that this event provides useful information to broker-dealers and investment advisers in complying with these key regulatory enhancements. Staff from the
The Deterrent Effect of Whistleblowing on Insider Trading
One of the many significant reforms enacted in The Dodd–Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act of 2010 was the creation of a whistleblower bounty program within the SEC. The program increased monetary rewards for whistleblowing and provided protections …
Davis Polk Discusses SEC Rebuke Over Stock Buybacks Under 10b5-1 Plan
On October 15, the SEC announced a settlement stemming from a company’s series of stock buybacks undertaken pursuant to a Rule 10b5-1 plan. Although the SEC concluded that the company initiated the 10b5-1 plan at a time when it possessed …
How SEC Enforcement Affects Insider Leakage
In 2012, Mary L. Schapiro, the chairwoman of the Securities and Exchange Commission, argued that market participants had “short memories” and that the SEC as a result had to take regular enforcement actions “so that people don’t forget that they …
Latham & Watkins Discusses SEC Proposal of Safe Harbor Framework for Unregistered Finders
On October 7, 2020, the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) issued a Notice of Proposed Exemptive Order Granting Conditional Exemption from the Broker Registration Requirements of Section 15(a) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 for Certain Activities of …
Cleary Gottlieb Discusses Why Second Circuit Should Abandon “Core Operations” Doctrine
In the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, Congress imposed heightened pleading standards on securities fraud claims in order to discourage the filing of unmeritorious litigation.[1] Key among these standards are the dual requirements that a complaint “state …
SEC Chair Speaks on FY 2020 Results
Thank you, Stephanie [Avakian], for that kind introduction. I am pleased that this annual event can continue in our new virtual environment. Thank you all for taking the time to participate today and for your continued interest in the work