Morgan Stanley Buys Smith Barney from Citigroup Morgan Stanley (MS) now owns Smith Barney, which it just bought from Citigroup (C) for $9.4 billion. Smith Barney’s new name is Morgan Stanley Wealth Management. Based on its new number of financial advisers, the deal makes Morgan Stanley the largest Wall Street…
Senators Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass) and John McCain (R-Ariz.) have joined forces to unveil the 21st Century Glass-Steagall Act, which aims to create a definite divide between speculative activities and traditional banking. This is a modern day revision of the original Glass-Steagall legislation from the 1930’s, which placed definite limits on…
SLUSA Precludes JPMorgan Securities Allegations Involving Mutual Fund Sales As preempted by the Securities Litigation Uniform Standards Act, the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois dismissed what would have been a would-be state law class action against JPMorgan Securities LLC (JPM) and related entities over mutual-fund sales…
In Dallas, Chief Judge Sidney A. Fitzwater of the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Texas has thrown out the class action lawsuit filed by Verizon Communications (VZ) management retirees looking to stop their ex-employer from selling $8.4 billion of their pensions to Prudential Insurance Company of America…
According to a source with direct knowledge about the Office of Comptroller of the Currency’s findings, the agency had already warned JPMorgan Chase (JPM) last year that the investment bank had erred when it directed clients toward its in-house investment products. OCC examiners found that in late 2011 JPMorgan had…
William Galvin, the Massachusetts Secretary of the Commonwealth, is subpoenaing 15 brokerage firms in its probe into complex products that were sold to older investors. Morgan Stanley (MS), LPL Financial (LPLA), Merrill Lynch (MER), UBS AG (UBS), Bank of America Corp. (BAC), Fidelity Investments, Wells Fargo & Co. (WFC), Charles…
New York’s highest court has revived a declaratory judgment action against D & Liability insurers after finding that the Securities and Exchange Commission order mandating that Bear Stearns (BSC) pay $160M in disgorgement failed to establish in a conclusive manner that payment could not be insured. The securities lawsuit is…
Should investors have the option to resolve their securities claims not just in arbitration but also in court? Recently, Senator Al Franken (D-Minn) voiced his opinion that offering investors both options would be fairer. His comment came weeks after SEC Commissioner Luis Aguilar publicly spoke out against mandatory arbitration, noting…
A U.S. district judge in California has put out a tentative decision in the $5B fraud lawsuit against Standard & Poor’s indicating that he will likely reject a motion to dismiss the civil case against the credit rating agency. Judge David Carter said he needs more time to come up…
The passing of S. Mark Powell, who runs Invesco Ltd.’s (IVZ) Atlantic Trust Private Wealth Management, has exposed the vulnerabilities of some of the wealthiest members of Texas’s investment community. Powell was found dead in May, and, since then, investors have been stepping forward to say they lent him millions…