The Municipal Securities Rulemaking Board is currently asking for public comment on several rulemaking proposals and draft interpretive guidance, including the proposed Rule G-36, a new fiduciary duty rule for municipal advisors. Comment is also being sought on proposed rule amendments and guidances related to gifts by municipal advisors and…
Gregg M. Berger, an ex-Gilford Securities broker, has been indicted for conspiracy over his alleged involvement in a global pump and dump stock fraud scheme involving thinly traded Israeli and Chinese securities. He is charged with wire fraud and securities fraud. The SEC has also filed related civil securities fraud…
The securities case accusing Merrill Lynch International alleging breach of contract related to the $18 million credit default swap purchased by DKR Soundshore Oasis Holding Fund Ltd has been reinstated. The Appellate Division (First Department) of the New York Supreme Court rejected the financial firm’s efforts to get the case…
Kurt Branham Barton, the former CEO of Triton Financial, a financial firm based in Austin, Texas, has been indicted on 33 counts, including Texas securities fraud, money laundering, and wire fraud. Barton allegedly used ex-NFL stars and church contacts in a $50 million Ponzi scam. The American-Statesman reports that beginning…
The U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York says it will not direct the Securities and Exchange Commission to contact German authorities on behalf ex-Goldman Sachs & Co. (GS) executive Fabrice Tourre, who is seeking to obtain certain documents related to the securities fraud case against him.…
The Securities and Exchange Commission says that investors can now access detailed data about money market funds, including their portfolio’s market-based price, called its “shadow NAV” (net asset value). The public can now access this information, which will be updated regularly, on the SEC’s website through the Electronic Data Gathering,…
The U.S. District Court for the District of Connecticut says that ex-UBS (UBS) employee Mary Barker’s whistleblower claim alleging that she was retaliated against for she reporting a purported accounting mistake can move forward. Her Age Discrimination in Employment Act claim, however, was dismissed. Barker, who used to work UBS’s…
TD Ameritrade Inc. (AMTD) has settled Securities and Exchange Commission charges that it failed to reasonably supervise its representatives, some who sold shares of the Reserve Yield Plus Fund to clients. As part of the settlement, TD Ameritrade will pay $10 million to eligible customers who are still fund shareholders.…
The Securities and Exchange Commission has approved the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority’s proposal to give investors the choice of having their securities claims against broker-dealers heard by an arbitration panel that doesn’t include any industry members. FINRA says that its Rule 12403, which lets investors choose between a majority-public panel…
Credit Suisse Securities (USA) LLC (CS) broker Eric Butler is permanently barred from future violations of securities laws. The U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York granted the Securities and Exchange Commission’s motion for the permanent injunction late last month. Butler was convicted of criminal charges related…