If you exchanged an official email with any SEC employee recently, you have seen the banner for Howeycoins Travel Network. And if you like to get in on a profitable deal, you probably thought, “well, if the SEC is endorsing them, these guys must be legit.” Perhaps you clicked on…
Ever since it was implemented, brokers have relied on the Protocol for Broker Recruiting to be able to take some of their clients with them when they leave a firm, but a recent ruling by a state court in Georgia might jeopardize the Protocol’s protections. The Appeals court’s ruling concluded…
The head of Massachusetts’ state securities regulatory body, Secretary of the Commonwealth William F. Galvin, issued a public statement announcing an inquiry into the practices of some of the top local broker-dealers related to private placement investments. These funding rounds of securities, which are not sold through a public offering,…
FINRA has announced it will increase its scrutiny of the cryptocurrency market. As several regulatory bodies endeavor to establish their jurisdiction over the crypto space, FINRA will now boost its oversight of registered firms’ participation in its burgeoning market. In a new regulatory notice, the self-regulatory organization asked its 3,700…
Wells Fargo will pay $480 million to resolve fraud and insider trading allegations brought in a class action in California. According to the plaintiffs, top executives at the bank engaged in insider trading after employees were directed to create millions of accounts under customer names, without the customers’ consent. While…
Jehu Hand, a California-based attorney has been found guilty of securities fraud and is now awaiting sentencing. Following his trial, which took place in Boston, the defendant could be facing up to eight years in prison. The federal jury found that Hand conspired with his two brothers to run a…
As Merrill Lynch brokers appear to lag behind their competitors at Morgan Stanley, some FAs at the firm are probably not looking forward to seeing their paychecks this summer season. Based on Merrill’s new compensation program, FAs who do not hit specific targets are going to endure punishment in the…
A few days before issuing the recent advisory for the cryptocurrency market, the Commodity Futures Trading Commission told the judge in the case against My Big Coin Pay Inc. that cryptocurrencies are commodities, and are therefore within CFTC jurisdiction. The federal judge in Massachusetts is hearing the case against My Big…
On May 21st, the Commodity Futures Trading Commission issued a new document offering valuable guidance for registered market participants. The head of the CFTC’s Division of Market Oversight, Amir Zaidi said in an accompanying press release, “The CFTC staff is committed to providing regulatory clarity as much as possible. As…
In a complex and shifting global scenario, the financial industry faces numerous challenges relating to anti-money laundering (AML) compliance. In a rapidly changing regulatory environment, within an unstable geopolitical context, financial institutions have to adapt to new technologies and innovative operating models. As regulators worldwide coordinate to increase transparency and…