The authority to open SEC investigations, and therefore to issue subpoenas, was expanded under the Obama Administration to the director of Enforcement, rather than solely to the Commission itself. The Director of Enforcement then delegated that authority to various senior officials, including regional and associate directors and specialized unit chiefs. […]
Compliance
New York Now Requires Investment Advisor Registration
New York State is now requiring Investment Advisor Representatives who work in New York, or who have clients in New York, to register with the New York Investor Protection Bureau and meet certain exam requirements. The new regulation goes into effect February 1, 2021. https://www.jdsupra.com/legalnews/february-1-2021-deadline-mandatory-2498783/
$119 Million Securities Fraud Targeting South Asian American Community
The Securities and Exchange Commission today announced that it filed an emergency action against California-based real estate development company SiliconSage Builders LLC, aka Silicon Sage Builders, and its sole owner, Sanjeev Acharya, in connection with an alleged $119 million fraudulent offering. According to the SEC’s complaint, Silicon Sage Builders and […]
SEC Charges Disbarred New York Attorney and Florida Attorney with Scheme to Create False Opinion Letters
The Securities and Exchange Commission today charged disbarred attorney, Richard J. Rubin, and licensed attorney, Thomas J. Craft, with fraud for their roles in a legal opinion letter scheme to fraudulently facilitate the sale of millions of shares of… Read the Full Press Release Have a securities law question? Call […]
Firm Fined For Lax Text Message Storage
Broker-dealers are required to store and preserve all communications sent and received by their brokers for a period of three years pursuant to Section 17(a) and Rule 17a4 of the Exchange Act. That requirement includes text messages, as one firm recently learned the hard way. The SEC instituted administrative proceedings […]
Undisclosed Paid Promotions Result in SEC Charges
Promoting a security without disclosing that you are being paid to do so is unlawful “touting” and violates the federal securities laws. The SEC has charged a Tennessee business mand for promoting investments in initial coin offerings (ICOs) to his Twitter followers without disclosing that he was paid to do […]
SEC Modernizes Disclosures for Banking Registrants
The Securities and Exchange Commission announced that it has adopted rules to update and expand the statistical disclosures that bank and savings and loan registrants provide to investors, in light of changes in this sector over the past 30 years. The rules also eliminate certain disclosure items that are duplicative […]
SEC Charges Hertz’s Former CEO With Aiding and Abetting Company’s Financial Reporting and Disclosure Violations
The Securities and Exchange Commission today charged former Hertz CEO and Chairman Mark Frissora with aiding and abetting the company in its filing of inaccurate financial statements and disclosures. The SEC’s complaint alleges that as Hertz’s financial results fell short of its forecasts throughout 2013, Frissora pressured subordinates to “find […]
Firm Settles Charges of Defrauding Investors, Refunds Allegedly Ill-Gotten Gains
The Securities and Exchange Commission today announced that SCF Investment Advisors, Inc. (SCF) has agreed to settle charges that it selected mutual funds and cash sweep money market funds for clients that provided undisclosed revenue to the firm’s… Read the Full Press Release Have a securities law question? Call Sallah […]
Interactive Brokers With Failing to File Suspicious Activity Reports
Every securities broker is required, by law, to file a report of any suspicious transaction relevant to a possible violation of law or regulation. A transaction requires reporting if it involves or aggregates funds or other assets of at least $5,000, and the broker-dealer knows, suspects, or has reason to suspect that […]
