Biomet Charged With Repeating FCPA Violations
The Securities and Exchange Commission today announced that a Warsaw, Ind.-based medical device manufacturer has agreed to pay more than $30 million to resolve parallel SEC and Department of Justice investigations into the company’s repeat violations of the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA). Biomet first faced FCPA charges from the SEC and entered into a deferred prosecution agreement with the Department of Justice in March 2012, agreeing to pay more than $22 million to settle both cases. As part of the SEC settlement, Biomet agreed to retain an independent compliance consultant to review its FCPA compliance program. After the settlement…
Read MoreSEC Announces 2017 Examination Priorities
The Securities and Exchange Commission today announced its Office of Compliance Inspections and Examinations’ (OCIE) 2017 priorities. Areas of focus include electronic investment advice, money market funds, and financial exploitation of senior investors. The priorities also reflect a continuing focus on protecting retail investors, including individuals investing for their retirement, and assessing market-wide risks. “These priorities make clear we are continuing to focus on a wide range of issues impacting our markets, from traditional areas such as market-wide risks to new forms of technology including automated investment advice,” said SEC Chair Mary Jo White. “Whether it is protecting our most…
Read MoreITG Paying $24 Million for Improper Handling of ADRs
The Securities and Exchange Commission today announced that broker ITG agreed to pay more than $24.4 million to settle charges that it violated federal securities laws when it prompted the issuance of American Depository Receipts (ADRs) without possessing the underlying foreign shares. ADRs are U.S. securities that represent shares of a foreign company, and for all issued ADRs there must be a corresponding number of foreign shares in custody. On behalf of counterparties, ITG obtained ADRs from depositary banks that administer ADR programs. The SEC’s order finds that ITG facilitated transactions known as “pre-releases” of ADRs to its counterparties without…
Read MoreInvestment Adviser, Lawyer Settle Charges in Secret Referral Fee Scheme
The Securities and Exchange Commission today announced that a Connecticut-based investment adviser has agreed to admit wrongdoing and pay more than $575,000 to settle charges that he defrauded a client and then compounded his scheme by attempting to mislead SEC investigators while lying to other clients about the status of the SEC’s investigation. According to the SEC’s order against John W. Rafal, he secretly paid a lawyer for referring a legal client’s large account to Essex Financial Services, an investment advisory firm Rafal founded. Instead of disclosing the referral fee arrangement to the elderly widow who owned the account, as…
Read MoreSEC Awards $5.5 Million to Whistleblower
The Securities and Exchange Commission today announced an award of more than $5.5 million to a whistleblower who provided critical information that helped the SEC uncover an ongoing scheme. According to the SEC’s order, the whistleblower was employed at the company involved in the wrongdoing and reported the information directly to the SEC, which brought a successful enforcement action to end the scheme. “Whistleblowers play a key role in bringing wrongdoing to the SEC’s attention, and this whistleblower helped prevent further harm to a vulnerable investor community by boldly stepping forward while still employed at the company,” said Jane Norberg,…
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