In The Producers, Max Bialystock and Leo Bloom realize they can make more money with a flop than a hit. No one audits a flop and the fraudsters are free to flee with their investors’ money. According to the Securities and Exchange Commission, GC Resources, LLC and Brian J. Polito was trying to run a … Read more »
Norman Leventhal
Norman Leventhal, the founder of my firm, passed away this weekend. Norman had a tremendous influence on Boston. His legacy will be with us for generations. He developed or re-develeped some of Greater Boston’s best-known landmarks: Rowes Wharf, Center Plaza, the Hotel Meridien, 75 State Street, and South Station. He formed the Norman B. Leventhal … Read more »
SEC Action for Stifling Whistleblowers in Confidentiality Agreements
A story surfaced a few weeks ago that the Securities and Exchange Commission was taking a close look at employment agreements that limited the actions of whistleblowers. The story behind the story came out. The SEC brought an action against KBR, Inc. for violating whistleblower protection Rule 21F-17 enacted under the Dodd-Frank Act. KBR required … Read more »
April 1
A reminder to look at your calendar before trusting the news or a strange situation today. For fun, try Google Maps and look for the Pac-Man option. For shopping, try to figure which new item at ThinkGeek is real (if any) Read more »
SEC Brings a Valuation Case Against an Investment Adviser
Lynn Tilton and her firm, Patriarch Partners, are known for their high-risk, high-return investments in distressed companies. The Securities and Exchange Commission brought a case against her and the firm claiming that they were using improper valuations, failing to mark down assets when the investment became more distressed. At this point we only have the … Read more »
A New Exception to the Custody Rule
The Custody Rule can be difficult for private equity and real estate fund managers to navigate. When I see some regulatory relief or clarification I hope for the best. 16th Amendment Advisors received relief for one of its funds based its particular circumstance Could that relief may be useful for other fund managers? That’s not … Read more »
Weekend Reading: Argo
In 1979, Iranian militants stormed the American embassy in Tehran and captured dozens of American, holding them hostage for 444 days. Six Americans escaped and hid in the home of the Canadian ambassador. A top-level CIA officer named Antonio Mendez devised an ingenious yet incredibly risky plan to rescue them before they were detected. You … Read more »
Compliance Bricks and Mortar for March 27
March Madness! SEC Loses an AP for First Time Since FY 2013 by Bruce Carton in Compliance Week In FY 2014, however, the SEC maintained 100% perfection in its administrative proceedings. The agency reportedly prevailed in every single one of its more than 200 APs in FY 2014, including 14 consecutive victories in cases that … Read more »
Failure to Disclose Loans Among Affiliated Funds
Once you hear the words “inter-fund loans”, a compliance professional is going to sit up straight and be concerned. Anything “inter-fund” is an inherent conflict. That one fund is loaning another fund money is an indicator that something has gone wrong. Stilwell Value managed several private funds. According to the SEC order, the Stilwell funds … Read more »
Compliance Bricks and Mortar for March 20
It’s finally Spring. Someday, all of this snow in Boston will melt. Someday. These are some of the compliance-related stories that recently caught my attention. The Fraudster Next Door by Scott Greenfield in Simple Justice Whether an epidemic of white collar crime exists in Utah isn’t clear. There isn’t much of an epidemic of any … Read more »