SEC Announces Agenda for October 12 Investor Advisory Committee Meeting
The Securities and Exchange Commission today announced the agenda for the October 12 meeting of its Investor Advisory Committee. The meeting will begin at 10 a.m. in the Multipurpose Room at SEC headquarters at 100 F Street, N.E., Washington, D.C., and is open to the public. The meeting will be webcast live and archived on the committee’s webpage for later viewing. The committee will hold three panel discussions covering blockchain technology and implications for securities markets, law school clinic advocacy efforts on behalf of retail investors, and electronic delivery of information to retail investors, which may include a Recommendation of…
Read MoreSEC Suspends Trading in Company Purporting Involvement in Hurricane Harvey Relief Efforts
The Securities and Exchange Commission today suspended trading in a company amid questions surrounding its statements about sending response teams and equipment to help with Hurricane Harvey disaster recovery efforts in Houston and surrounding areas. The SEC’s trading suspension order says that a recent press release issued by Texas-based Grupo Resilient International claimed that the company added a “FEMA approved contractor” to the board of its subsidiary and was deploying workers and preparing to deploy a network of mobile broadband trailers to assist in relief efforts. The SEC’s order also says there are questions regarding the adequacy and accuracy of…
Read MoreSEC Adopts Interpretive Guidance on Pay Ratio Rule
The Securities and Exchange Commission has approved interpretive guidance to assist companies in their efforts to comply with the pay ratio disclosure requirement mandated by Section 953(b) of the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act. Under the Commission’s rule implementing the pay ratio requirement, companies are required to begin making pay ratio disclosures in early 2018. “It’s our priority to make sure that we implement disclosure rules mandated by Congress in a way that is true to the mandate and, to the extent practicable, allows companies to use operational data and otherwise readily available information to produce the disclosures,”…
Read MoreTelecommunications Company Paying $965 Million For FCPA Violations
Sweden-based telecommunications provider Telia Company AB has agreed to pay $965 million in a global settlement with the Securities and Exchange Commission, U.S. Department of Justice, and Dutch and Swedish law enforcement to resolve charges related to violations of the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) to win business in Uzbekistan. According to the SEC’s order, Telia entered the Uzbek telecommunications market by offering and paying at least $330 million in bribes to a shell company under the guise of payments for lobbying and consulting services that never actually occurred. The shell company was controlled by an Uzbek government official who…
Read MoreSEC Chairman Clayton Issues Statement on Cybersecurity
SEC Chairman Jay Clayton today issued a statement highlighting the importance of cybersecurity to the agency and market participants, and detailing the agency’s approach to cybersecurity as an organization and as a regulatory body. The statement is part of an ongoing assessment of the SEC’s cybersecurity risk profile that Chairman Clayton initiated upon taking office in May. Components of this initiative have included the creation of a senior-level cybersecurity working group to coordinate information sharing, risk monitoring, and incident response efforts throughout the agency. The statement provides an overview of the Commission’s collection and use of data and discusses key…
Read More