JPMorgan Chase Paying $264 Million to Settle FCPA Charges
The Securities and Exchange Commission today announced that JPMorgan Chase & Co. has agreed to pay more than $130 million to settle SEC charges that it won business from clients and corruptly influenced government officials in the Asia-Pacific region by giving jobs and internships to their relatives and friends in violation of the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA). JPMorgan also is expected to pay $72 million to the Justice Department and $61.9 million to the Federal Reserve Board of Governors for a total of more than $264 million in sanctions resulting from the firm’s referral hiring practices. According to an…
Read MoreSEC Approves Plan to Create Consolidated Audit Trail
The Securities and Exchange Commission today voted to approve a national market system (NMS) plan to create a single, comprehensive database known as the consolidated audit trail (CAT) that will enable regulators to more efficiently and thoroughly track all trading activity in the U.S. equity and options markets. “With the approval and ultimate implementation of CAT, the Commission’s regulatory capacity strongly embraces 21st century technology, enabling the Commission and the SROs to harness data and technology to more effectively oversee market participants,” said SEC Chair Mary Jo White. “Through the CAT, regulators will have more timely access to a comprehensive…
Read MoreSEC Announces Agenda and Panelists for the 35th Annual Small Business Forum
The Securities and Exchange Commission today announced the agenda and panelists for the 35th Annual Government-Business Forum on Small Business Capital Formation. The November 17 event will begin at 9 a.m. and include a morning panel discussion that will explore how capital formation options are working for small businesses after the implementation of the JOBS Act. Panelists will include representatives of issuers and intermediaries involved with registered and exempt offerings by smaller companies. Following the morning panel discussion, participants will work in groups to formulate specific policy recommendations. These breakout groups will develop recommendations on a variety of issues related…
Read MoreSEC Chair Mary Jo White Announces Departure Plans
SEC Chair Mary Jo White, after nearly four years as the agency’s head, today announced that she intends to leave at the end of the Obama Administration. Under Chair White’s leadership, the Commission strengthened protections for investors and the markets through transformative rulemakings that addressed major issues highlighted by the financial crisis. The Commission also instituted a new approach to enforcement that has resulted in greater accountability and record actions through, among other things, the use of admissions of wrongdoing and enhanced data analytics and technology. Chair White, who became the 31st Chair of the SEC in April 2013, will…
Read MoreSEC Issues $20 Million Whistleblower Award
The Securities and Exchange Commission today announced an award of more than $20 million to a whistleblower who promptly came forward with valuable information that enabled the SEC to move quickly and initiate an enforcement action against wrongdoers before they could squander the money. The $20 million award is the third-highest since the SEC’s whistleblower program issued its first award in 2012. The program has now awarded more than $130 million to whistleblowers who voluntarily provided the SEC with unique and useful information that led to a successful enforcement action. By law, the SEC protects the confidentiality of whistleblowers and…
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