SEC Announces Charges Against Attorneys and Auditors in Microcap Scheme Involving Purported Mining Companies
The Securities and Exchange Commission today announced charges against attorneys, auditors, and others allegedly involved in a microcap scheme the agency stifled last year when it suspended the registration statements of 20 purported mining companies being used for sham offerings of stock to investors. The SEC Enforcement Division alleges that a Canada-based attorney and stock promoter named John Briner orchestrated the scheme, which entailed creating shell companies supposedly exploring mining activities. Briner had been suspended from practicing on behalf of entities regulated by the SEC, so he recruited clients and associates to become figurehead executive officers while he secretly controlled…
Read MoreFee Rate Advisory #3 for Fiscal Year 2015
The Securities and Exchange Commission today announced that starting on Feb. 14, 2015, the fee rates applicable to most securities transactions will be set at $18.40 per million dollars. Consequently, each SRO will continue to pay the Commission a rate of $22.10 per million for transactions occurring on charge dates through Feb. 13, 2015, and a rate of $18.40 per million for transactions occurring on charge dates on or after Feb. 14, 2015. (For more information on the term “charge date,” please refer to Rule 31(a)(3) and Exchange Act Release No. 49928 at http://www.sec.gov/rules/final/34-49928.htm.) The assessment on security futures transactions…
Read MoreSEC Charges UBS Subsidiary With Disclosure Violations and Other Regulatory Failures in Operating Dark Pool
The Securities and Exchange Commission today charged a subsidiary of UBS with disclosure failures and other securities law violations related to the operation and marketing of its dark pool. UBS Securities LLC agreed to settle the charges by paying more than $14.4 million, including a $12 million penalty that is the SEC’s largest against an alternative trading system (ATS). An SEC examination and investigation of UBS revealed that the firm failed to properly disclose to all subscribers the existence of an order type that it pitched almost exclusively to market makers and high-frequency trading firms. The order type, called PrimaryPegPlus…
Read MoreSEC Adopts Rules to Increase Transparency in Security-Based Swap Market
The Securities and Exchange Commission today adopted two new sets of rules that will require security-based swap data repositories (SDRs) to register with the SEC and prescribe reporting and public dissemination requirements for security-based swap transaction data. The SEC also proposed certain additional rules, rule amendments and guidance related to the reporting and public dissemination of security-based swap transaction data. The new rules are designed to increase transparency in the security-based swap market and to ensure that SDRs maintain complete records of security-based swap transactions that can be accessed by regulators. The rules implement mandates under Title VII of the…
Read MoreSEC Announces Members of New Equity Market Structure Advisory Committee
The Securities and Exchange Commission today announced the members of a new Equity Market Structure Advisory Committee, which will focus on the structure and operations of the U.S. equities markets. The committee will provide a formal mechanism through which the Commission can receive advice and recommendations specifically related to equity market structure issues. The members of the committee come from different sectors of the financial services industry, academia and from public interest groups. The members were approved by all five Commissioners. “Additional expertise from a diversity of backgrounds and viewpoints will be invaluable to us in ensuring that our markets…
Read More