Tag: SEC

According to the SEC’s strategic outline, when Main Street investors seek professional advice, their choices “all too often are not as clear as they should be.”

Regulation Best Interest lays out the core loyalty and disclosure duties of advisers and broker/dealers—and how these can be satisfied.

Noting that they believe a more viable customer relationship summary (CRS) form can still be developed by the SEC as part of its Regulation Best Interest proposal, a group of retiree and investor advocacy organizations has published a report calling the draft CRS form misleading and unhelpful.

The SEC included these proposals as part of its proposed best interest standards for investment advisers.

The agency has issued a proposal that would make it easier for ETFs to come to market.

In response to staff and client feedback, and in the wake of the defeat of the DOL fiduciary rule, the firm is taking steps to reintroduce use of commission-based products for retirement account clients.

In addition, they say the definition of “best interest” is not clear.

They say that additional interpretation of standards of conduct for investment advisers is unnecessary and that imposing broker/dealer standards on life insurers and investment advisers is inappropriate.

Commentary from Wagner Law Group and Drinker Biddle attorneys highlights what advisers need to know about the SEC’s ongoing analysis of broker/dealer “best execution” issues, as summarized in a recent Risk Alert publication.

The leader of Sullivan & Worcester's Capital Markets Group analyzes the SEC’s recent move to double the limit of equity compensation that can be awarded by private companies in any 12-month period without requiring detailed disclosures; he also urges stakeholders to respond to the SEC's open call for comment about equity compensation under Rule 701. 

The SEC solicited public comment on potential changes to the regulator’s treatment of equity compensation, tied to the emergence of the “gig economy.”

State Street replies that "since the overcharging was discovered [we] have substantially enhanced our controls."

Without admitting guilt or even the facts of the case, Betterment has settled various allegations of improper recordkeeping and "window dressing" leveled by FINRA, to the tune of $400,000.

Participants in non-ERISA 403(b) plans could be considered "retail customers" under a section of the SEC's proposal, a law alert warns.

The brokerage firm will pay more than $15 million in settlement.

The Commission is also seeking public feedback on fund disclosure and the fees that intermediaries charge funds for delivering fund reports.

A new client alert published by the Wagner Law Group urges advisory firms to review and consider an update to anti-churning policies, now that FINRA and the SEC are both engaging in the matter.

This leaves the SEC’s revised conflict of interest standards for brokers and advisers as the leading alternative.

If an adviser reduced their fee due to the receipt of 12b-1 fees, the SEC might not ask for any disgorgement; for instance, the SEC says, if an adviser regularly charges an annual management fee of 1.25% of assets but lowered that to 1% in light of the 12b-1 fees, the SEC says it is unlikely to ask for any disgorgement.