These are some of the compliance-related stories that recently caught my attention.
Quantity does not equal quality: Expanding ‘disclosure events’ on BrokerCheck a bad idea: Brokerage industry is only one in which professionals as deemed guilty until proven innocent by S. Lawrence Polk in Investment News
Under the current version of Form U4, brokers and their firms are required to disclose any written customer complaint, no matter how frivolous, as long as it somehow relates to a sales practice issue, even if the broker is not named in the complaint. The broker that is the subject of the complaint has it reported on his or her CRD and can remove the disclosure only by going through an expensive and time consuming expungement action, in which the broker bears the burden of proving the complaint is false.
In other words, the broker is deemed guilty until he or she proves his or her innocence. No other profession has a reporting system where the mere filing of a complaint, even if it is later withdrawn, remains part of the public record for years afterward.
Massachusetts Regulators Allege TelexFREE Is $1 Billion Ponzi Scheme by Jordan D. Maglich in Ponzitracker
Massachusetts securities regulators have initiated civil proceedings accusing a Massachusetts and Nevada company of operating a massive pyramid andPonzi scheme targeting Brazilian-Americans that, through the promises of guaranteed annual returns exceeding 200%, raised more than $90 million from Massachusetts residents alone and nearly $1 billion worldwide. TelexFREE, Inc., a Massachusetts corporation, and TelexFREE, LLC, a Nevada limited liability company (collectively, “TelexFREE”), were accused of violations of the Massachusetts Uniform Securities Act by engaging in the fraudulent offering and sale of unregistered securities. The Massachusetts Enforcement Section of the Massachusetts Securities Division is seeking, in relevant part, a permanent cease-and-desist order, an accounting, restitution to victims, and disgorgement of profits and ill-gotten gains.
Was the Conflict Minerals Ruling a “Win” for SEC Rulemaking? by Dave Lynn in CorporateCounsel.net
With this outcome, the rule writers at the SEC are no doubt breathing a sigh of relief, as they still have a relatively full plate of Dodd-Frank Act and JOBS Act mandated rulemakings that continue to percolate. After a string of high profile losses in this Court and the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia, this outcome is probably the best that the SEC and the Staff could have hoped for and may serve to pave the way for moving forward with the rest of the rulemaking agenda.
The High Cost of Procrastination by Dan Ariely
This is what procrastination is all about. When we think about our life in general we see the benefits of getting our work done on time, saving for retirement, eating better and other good habits. Yet when we face the decision about right now, we get tempted and too often follow our immediate desires and not what it is good for us in the long-term.
