Category Archives: Regulatory

Compliance, Enforcement, International, Regulatory, Standard of Care

What to Expect from the SEC Under the Biden Administration

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We know there will be new leadership at the SEC.  President Biden has already nominated Gary Gensler as the new SEC Chair. Mr. Gensler, who served as chairman of the CFTC under Obama, was widely perceived as an aggressive CFTC chairman during the financial crisis. At that time, this aggressiveness eased progressives’ concerns that President Obama was appointing a Wall Street executive (Gensler is an alumnus of Goldman Sachs) to head the CFTC. Now, opposition to Gensler is more likely to come from conservatives, who may regard him as an overzealous enforcer.

Meanwhile, the Commission is being led by acting Chair Allison Herren Lee.  Chair Lee is a long-time SEC enforcement attorney who also acted as counsel to Commissioner Kara Stein before assuming her position as a commissioner in mid-2019.  She is regarded as pro-enforcement and will be an ally of Mr. Gensler should he be confirmed as Chairman.

What will this new leadership mean for market participants?

Read more here.

Compliance, Enforcement, Regulatory, Standard of Care

ADV Season is Here; Compliance Resources for Brokers and RIAs; Don’t Forget Your CPO Annual Affirmations; SEC Creates 5-Year “Sandbox” for BD Custody of Digital Assets

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February Regulatory Updates from Cari Hopsfenperger at Hardin Compliance Consulting LLC.

Topics include:

Read the full update here.

Compliance, Regulatory, Standard of Care

On the right track: Securities & Exchange Commission adopts rules to streamline private offering exemptions

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On November 2, 2020, the Securities and Exchange Commission (the SEC) voted to adopt final amendments (the Amendments) 1 to “simplify, harmonize, and improve certain aspects of the exempt offering framework.” 2 The Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the Securities Act), requires that every offer and sale of securities be registered with the SEC, unless an exemption from registration is available. The current exempt offering framework includes ten exemptions or safe harbors from the registration requirements of the Securities Act, each with distinct requirements. The goal of the Amendments is to reduce unnecessary complexity within the exempt offering framework and to allow market participants (including business development companies, or BDCs) to navigate through the exempt offering framework more easily.

To summarize, the Amendments:

  • clarify the ability of issuers to move from one exemption to another;
  • revise certain offering and investment limits to address inconsistencies in current rules;
  • set clear and consistent rules governing offering communications between investors and issuers (e.g., “test-the-waters” and “demo day” activities); and
  • harmonize certain disclosures, eligibility requirements and bad actor disqualification provisions.

Read More Here.

Compliance, Enforcement, Regulatory

FINRA Panel Stretched Rule 8210 Too Far

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A recent 2-1 decision by the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority Office of Hearing Officers stretched Rule 8210 beyond its wording and intent, barring a registered representative in the process.

The case, Department of Enforcement v. Wilfredo Felix, et al., involved several issues, including Felix’s failure to produce his Wage and Income Transcript (IRS transcript), which he could have obtained by submitting an IRS Form.

An IRS transcript is an IRS-created document that shows “most line items” from tax returns, including adjusted gross income. During the investigation, FINRA staff asked Felix to produce his IRS transcripts (a very rare request), which he did not have in his possession, or to sign an IRS Form instructing the IRS to send them to him.

He refused, stating that FINRA’s request went beyond the scope of Rule 8210.

Read More Here.

Compliance, Enforcement, Regulatory, Standard of Care

The Show, er, um, Article About Nothing (other than SEC, CFTC, FINRA, and State Securities Enforcement Actions in August 2020)

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Everyone knows that Seinfeld, which premiered 31 summers ago, was one of the most popular television sitcoms ever. It was on the airwaves (remember those?) for nine years, nominated for 68 Emmy Awards, winning ten times, including twice for Outstanding Writing in a Comedy Series, winning twice. It was self-identified as a “show about nothing.” Indeed, co-creator Larry David “admonished the writing staff that there would be ‘no hugging, no learning’ in the scripts, and there wasn’t. Ever.” However, despite this warning, those who watched the show know that it was, in fact, a show about a lot, including the following:

  •  A “puffy” shirt;
  •  A low talker, a close talker, and a high talker;
  •  A short-tempered soup restaurant owner who yells, “No soup for you”;
  •  Waiting for a table at a Chinese restaurant;
  •  Contests among friends;
  •  Re-gifting; and
  •  Of course, yada yada yada.

Those who watched the show carefully also know that despite the “no learning” admonition, Seinfeld provided important lessons about topics related to investing and the securities industry. Indeed, the final episode of the first season was called “The Stock Tip,” and 24% of all televisions in America “tuned in” to watch14 (back when we “changed” channels on a “TV”—not on a “screen” and “streaming” was the route tears took down your face when the TV antenna flew off your roof).

Read more here, to explore themes contained in Seinfeld that help explain securities enforcement actions.