In comment letters sent to the Securities and Exchange Commission, numerous law firms wrote that the retroactive approach taken in a proposed rule to bar “bad actors” from Regulation D private offerings under the 1933 Securities Act sets up a number of fairness issues. The law firms also cautioned that…
An El Paso man accused of running a Texas Ponzi scheme may in fact be a man who was convicted of fraud in Maryland more than 10 years ago. Scott Lindemann is now charged with wire fraud for allegedly defrauding at least 25 investors of $2 million. Prosecutors say that…
Senate and House Democrats have brought forward a revised proposal that would mandate that shareholders are notified of and approve any spending of corporate money towards political spending. The Shareholder Protection Act of 2011, which was introduced by Rep. Mike Capuano (D-Mass.) and Sen. Robert Menendez (D-N.J.), will hopefully curb…
The Securities and Exchange Commission has issued an order raising the threshold for determining whether an investment adviser can charge performance fees to clients. The increase is because of inflation. It also executes a Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act requirement. Under the Investment Adviser Act’s Rule 205-3,…
The Financial Industry Regulatory Authority is barring a former Citigroup broker from membership. The sanction comes following allegations of Texas securities fraud. According to the findings, Jose Luis Vinas converted about $3.3 million from customers while he served as a registered representative for both UBS Securities and Citigroup. The clients…
In Wilson v. Merrill Lynch & Co. Inc., the Securities Industry and Financial Markets Association and the Securities and Exchange Commission have submitted separate amicus curiae briefs to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit that differ on whether Merrill Lynch can be held liable for allegedly manipulating…
According to the Securities and Exchange Commission, the sales practices that broker-dealers engage in when structured securities are hurting investors. The SEC released this recent finding in a report this week. Structured securities products are derivatives whose value is determined from baskets of indexes, other securities, options, debt issuances, commodities,…
According to Sean McKessy, the head of Securities and Exchange Commission’s Whistleblower Office, the agency has a $453 million fund from which to award bounties under its new whistleblower program. Kessey recently spoke during a BNA webinar. The 2010 Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act requires that certain…
The National Credit Union Administration has filed a $629 million securities fraud lawsuit against RBS Securities, Wachovia Mortgage Loan Trust LLC, Nomura Home Equity Loan Inc., Greenwich Capital Acceptance Inc., Lares Asset Securitization Inc., IndyMac MBS Inc., and American Home Mortgage Assets LLC. The NCUA is accusing the financial firms…
In district court, Judge Samuel Conti has confirmed a Financial Industry Regulatory Authority panel’s $75,000 arbitration award to Kenneth Schaffer against Wells Fargo Advisors, LLC. It was the financial firm that began proceedings against its former employer last year. Schaffer accused Wells Fargo of “ending” his career when on a…