From Brian Rubin and Sarah Sallis in this month’s column for NSCP Currents:

Forty years ago, in Raiders of the Lost Ark, the world was introduced to Indiana Jones, who hunted for the Lost Ark of the Covenant, while chasing and being chased by Nazis. While Raiders and the other Indy movies were not about investments (as that word is used in common parlance), the first movie did involve extremely valuable gold in its opening sequence, in the form of the fictitious Golden Idol. In addition to treasures, the Indiana Jones movies also concerned good v. bad, fighting, adventure, snakes, and some humor.  In other words, in many respects, they are similar to enforcement actions (other than the snakes) (although we do know some people who might be considered snakes).

Read more here.

On June 23, 2021, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (the “Commission”) entered an administrative order (the “Order”) that, among other things, fined a broker-dealer (“BD”) $208,912 for alleged violations of Rule 21F-17(a), which relates to individuals reporting possible securities laws violations to the Commission (a.k.a., whistleblowers).

Practice Tip: While the Order was entered against a broker-dealer, Rule 21F-17(a) applies to all entities subject to the Commission’s jurisdiction (e.g., public companies, broker-dealers, and investment managers). Indeed, the Commission has previously sanctioned public companies and investment advisers for violations of Rule 21F-17(a).

Read more here for both a summary of the Order’s findings, and take-aways for legal and compliance practitioners who support firms that are subject to the Commission’s jurisdiction.