Articles Posted in SEC Action

The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission appears to be increasing its scrutiny of broker-dealers who fail to comply with the Bank Secrecy Act (BSA) and Anti-Money Laundering (AML) reporting requirements. Traditionally this type of violations remained off the SEC’s radar, being usually pursued by the DOJ, FinCEN, the IRS, and other federal agencies. After SEC’s…

Barclays Capital has reached a $97 million settlement with the Securities and Exchange Commission to resolve allegations that its Wealth and Investment Management Americas (WIMA) unit overcharged clients by $50 million between 2010 and 2015. The SEC’s investigation determined that Barclays Capital, which sold its WIMA unit in 2015, incurred violations of multiple sections of…

Check cashing businesses are a major focus of anti-money laundering rules and regulations. Investors recently learned that federal and New York prosecutors are currently investigating Capital One Financial Corp.’s anti-money laundering program and “certain check casher clients” from the financial institution’s annual report – offering the perfect opportunity to review the regulatory expectations for check…

The SEC is not used to losing a case in-house, but that is precisely what happened on April 18th, when Judge James Grimes dismissed the insider trading allegations against Charles L. Hill of Atlanta. Hill had made a sizable profit by buying shares of Radiant Systems Inc. right before an acquisition by NCR Corp, and…

During the “SEC Speaks” Conference 2017, Acting U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission Chair Michael Piwowar amply discussed the plight of the “forgotten investor.” Citing the work of sociologist William Graham Sumner, who spoke of The Forgotten Man, “the victim of the reformer, social speculator, and philanthropist,” Piwowar questioned disclosure requirements, high corporate penalties and accreditation…

The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission is considering whether it will bring enforcement actions against Atlanta’s $205 billion-asset SunTrust Banks. SunTrust Investment Services, the bank’s broker-dealer arm, allegedly purchased pricey mutual funds on behalf of customers when more affordable alternatives were readily available. The SEC has made a “preliminary determination to recommend that the SEC…

It may come as no surprise that doing business in China holds a high risk of Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) violations. However, the record-setting numbers of FCPA enforcement actions seen in 2016 placed Mexico in a close second. With increases in multi-jurisdictional anti-corruption enforcement, the FCPA Pilot Program and a number of new Mexican…

Securities law violations are a major focus of regulatory compliance programs across the industry. Yet not all organizations realize the threat cybersecurity breaches pose to company viability. A new breed of corporate whistleblower is cropping up among marketplace professionals – the cybersecurity whistleblower. Compliance professionals and executives should familiarize themselves with potential violations and implement…

On October 11, 2016, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) released its fiscal year 2016 (FY2016) enforcement results, reporting collections totaling over $4 billion in disgorgement and penalties out of a record 868 enforcement actions against executives, companies and gatekeepers. SEC enforcement proceedings for FY2016 focused largely on cybersecurity compliance, financial reporting deficiencies, insider…

Maryland private equity fund advisory firm, Blackstreet Capital Management, LLC, and its owner, Murry N. Gunty, have agreed to pay more than $3.1 million to resolve allegations they violated the Securities Exchange and Investment Advisors Acts, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) announced Wednesday. The enforcement action arose out of SEC allegations that Blackstreet…