March 28, 2017
Client Alert: SEC Adopts T+2 Settlement Cycle for Securities Transactions
On March 22, 2017, the Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) adopted an amendment to Rule 15c6-1(a) under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 (“Exchange Act”), shortening the standard settlement cycle (i.e., the length of time between trade execution and delivery of cash and securities to the seller and buyer) for…
September 30, 2016
SEC Proposes to Shorten Securities Settlement Cycle
During an Open Meeting on September 28, 2016, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) proposed a rule amendment to expedite the process for settling securities transactions.
May 27, 2016
FINRA Proposes Immediately Effective Clarifications to the Debt Research Rule
FINRA proposed amendments (SR-FINRA-2016-017) to the debt research rule (FINRA Rule 2242 – Debt Research Analysts and Debt Research Reports), which addresses conflicts of interest relating to the publication and distribution of debt research reports. The proposed amendments clarify the application of the rule in four respects: (1) The consent requirement for institutional debt research reports distributed to non-U.S. investors by non-U.S. affiliates of broker-dealers; (2) The consent requirement for institutional debt research reports distributed to specified persons for informational purposes unrelated to investing in debt securities; (3) The scope of the institutional debt research report exemption when distributing third-party debt research reports to eligible institutional investors; and (4) The disclosure requirements for debt research analysts in public appearances.
September 10, 2014
SEC Charges Wedbush and Two Officials for Market Access Rule Violations
On June 6, 2014, the SEC announced charges against Wedbush Securities Inc. and two of its officials for violating the SEC’s market access rule (Exchange Act Rule 15c3-5). Wedbush Securities, a Los Angeles-based market access provider, was consistently ranked as one of the five largest firms by trading volume on NASDAQ.
September 10, 2014
FINRA Fines Goldman Sachs for Failing to Prevent Trade-Throughs on SIGMA-X System
On June 5, 2014, FINRA announced an $800,000 fine against Goldman Sachs for "failing to have reasonably designed written policies and procedures in place to prevent trade-throughs of protected quotations" in Sigma X, its dark pool. Dark pools allow investors to trade stocks anonymously and report trade data after the deals are completed. The price at which shares are offered for sale in dark pools is not visible to anyone, even those participating in them. These alternative trading systems have been criticized recently for their lack of transparency and because the rise of dark pools has reduced trading on exchanges that publicly quote prices, which could lead to less efficient pricing.