Next month, Frontline is running a report about Bernard Madoff on a PBS station near you. The episode premiers the week of May 12. “Bernard Madoff’s success as a broker made the competition wonder how the man could produce such steady returns in good times and bad. The SEC investigated several times over the last … Read more »
Year: 2009
Corresponding with Cornelius
Here are some of my recent comments on some other blogs or other websites that allow comments. Part of the new changes in the internet is the ability for readers to engage writers and other readers of their stories. I am happy to have you leave comments at Compliance Building. But if not here, take … Read more »
Failure to Conduct Diligence Can Lead to SEC Sanctions
If you advertise that you have due diligence process, you had better follow that process. The Securities and Exchange Commission brought an administrative proceeding against an investment adviser for failing to follow its advertised due diligence program. The Hennessee Group promoted its process for evaluating and selecting hedge funds as the “Five Level Due Diligence … Read more »
Credit Rating Agency Reform
Last week the Securities and Exchange Commission held a roundtable on the credit agencies to consider a range of ideas to get tougher on them. Securities and Exchange Commission Chairman Mary Schapiro lead the discussion and pointed out that “rating agency performance in the area of mortgage-backed securities backed by residential subprime loans, and the … Read more »
N.Y. Comptroller Bans Placement Agents for State Pension Fund
State Comptroller Thomas P. DiNapoli today announced he has banned the involvement of placement agents, paid intermediaries and registered lobbyists in investments with the New York State Common Retirement Fund (CRF). The ban includes entities “compensated on a flat fee, a contingent fee or any other basis.” See: N.Y. Comptroller Bans Placement Agents for State … Read more »
Earth Day
Today is the 39th celebration of Earth Day, celebrated in the U.S. each April 22 since 1970. Senator Gaylord Nelson from Wisconsin called for an environmental teach-in, or Earth Day, to be held on April 22, 1970. In that same year, the Environmental Protection Agency was formed to consolidate federal research, monitoring, and enforcement. About … Read more »
SIGTARP Quarterly Report
Congress was smart enough to not let loose the billions of TARP funds without some oversight. The Office of the Special Inspector General for the Troubled Asset Relief Program (SIGTARP) was established by Section 121 of the Emergency Economic Stabilization Act as amended by the Special Inspector General for the Troubled Asset Relief Program Act … Read more »
New Look, Printing, and Mobile Viewing
For those of you who get updates through email updates or RSS, you may not have seen the new look for the Compliance Building website. Please come back and take a look. I have also made some structural changes. The pages and posts are now printer friendly, making it easy to print and take the … Read more »
Tuesday Morning Quarterback and Compliance
What do these have in common? Gregg Easterbrook includes Tim Geithner, Charles Ponzi, Allen Stanford and Ron Blagojevich in his annual mock of mock football drafts. For those of you have who have not read Gregg Easterbrook’s Tuesday Morning Quarterback, he is not your normal football scribe. Gregg Easterbrook is a contributing editor for The … Read more »
SEC Enforcement Update: A Wounded Animal is a Dangerous Animal
Securities Docket presented this webcast with Michael MacPhail, of Holland & Hart LLP and Patrick Hunnius of White & Case LLP. “In a sharp detour from the era of Chairman Christopher Cox, the SEC under new Chairman Mary Shapiro’s leadership has obtained big budget increases that will be used to increase the number of enforcement … Read more »