May 3, 2013
Changes at the SEC
On May 1, the SEC announced that Carlo V. Di Florio, Director of the National Exam Program was stepping down and that Andrew Bowden was named as his successor. http://www.sec.gov/news/press/2013/2013-80.htm…
May 2, 2013
When is Crowdfunding Not Crowdfunding?
The answer to this question is when its done under §201 of the JOBS Act. On March 26, almost a full year after the JOBS Act was signed into law, the SEC issued a no-action letter FundersClub Inc. and FundersClub Management LLC . (“FundersClub”) FundersClub is a venture capital fund adviser. It manages venture capital funds and operates a website. Once FundersClub has identified start-up companies, it enters into an agreement with the company to raise a target amount. This is where the website comes into play. Once the agreement is reached with the start-up FundersClub post information provided by the company on its website. The information is available to FundersClub members all whom must be accredited investors. Does any of this sound familiar?
February 27, 2013
SEC No-Action Relief for Broker-Dealers Relying on Registered Investment Advisers for Anti-Money Laundering Obligations
The SEC has extended a former no-action letter position that permitted broker-dealers to rely on SEC registered investment advisers to perform its customer identification obligations for shared customers. The former position allows broker-dealers to rely on certain financial institutions to meet customer identification obligations under Rule 17a-8 of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 as long as the institution is subject to an anti-money laundering program regulated by a federal regulator.
February 22, 2013
SEC 2013 Examination Priorities
On February 21, 2013 the SEC released its 2013 examination priorities. The SEC states that with respect to broker-dealers it is going to continue to focus on sales practice/fraud, trading, capital, and AML. New issues of concern for the examination process are: the market access rule,…