News Centre

Statement On The Proposed Amendment To Rule 144, SEC Commissioner Elad L. Roisman, Dec. 22, 2020

Date 22/12/2020

The amendment to Rule 144 that the Commission proposed today is on the one hand a small, highly technical change, but on the other is the kind of unglamorous work that finely tunes our regulatory regime to meet the changing needs of the market. This proposed rulemaking would close a loophole that could put investors at risk and appears to have done little to forward the legitimate interests of smaller companies or their early-stage investors. Our ability to identify and address such details of regulation attest to the acumen of our staff and, in this case in particular, our former Director of Corporation Finance, Bill Hinman. This proposed amendment is a necessary change and one I was pleased to support.

CFTC: Federal Court Orders North Carolina Man To Pay Over $255,000 In Futures And Forex Fraud Scheme

Date 22/12/2020

The Commodity Futures Trading Commission today announced that Judge Max O. Cogburn Jr., of the U.S. District Court for the Western District of North Carolina, entered a consent order against Mark N. Pyatt, of North Carolina, imposing a permanent injunction and ordering Pyatt to make restitution in the amount of $255,850. The order also permanently bans Pyatt from registering with the CFTC and from trading commodity futures and retail foreign exchange contracts (forex). In the order, Pyatt admitted to fraudulently soliciting individuals to place funds in a commodity pool and to misappropriating most of the funds he solicited.

SEC Charges Ripple And Two Executives With Conducting $1.3 Billion Unregistered Securities Offering

Date 22/12/2020

The Securities and Exchange Commission announced today that it has filed an action against Ripple Labs Inc. and two of its executives, who are also significant security holders, alleging that they raised over $1.3 billion through an unregistered, ongoing digital asset securities offering.

SEC: Charles Koretke Named Managing Executive Of Division Of Examinations

Date 22/12/2020

The Securities and Exchange Commission today announced that Charles Koretke has been named Managing Executive of the Division of Examinations.  In this role, Mr. Koretke will manage and lead Examinations’ business operations in the areas of human capital, examiner training and development, budget formulation and execution, planning and executing information technology initiatives, and the provision of analytical services that support examinations.  He also will serve as Examinations’ primary liaison to other SEC divisions and offices on these matters.  Mr. Koretke has been serving as Examinations’ Acting Managing Executive since October 2019.

Statement By US Treasury Secretary Steven T. Mnuchin On Passage Of The Coronavirus Response And Relief Supplemental Appropriations Act

Date 22/12/2020

Secretary Steven T. Mnuchin issued the following statement on passage of the Coronavirus Response and Relief Supplemental Appropriations Act as part of the Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2021:

“I am pleased that the United States Senate and House of Representatives have passed on an overwhelmingly bipartisan basis the Coronavirus Response and Relief Supplemental Appropriations Act, as part of the Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2021.  I want to thank President Trump for his leadership and Leader McConnell, Leader Schumer, Speaker Pelosi and Leader McCarthy for working with the Administration to provide critical additional economic relief for American workers, families, and businesses that, through no fault of their own, have been adversely impacted by the corona

SEC Proposes Amendments To Rule 144 And Form 144, Designed To Reduce Risk Of Unregistered Distributions

Date 22/12/2020

The Securities and Exchange Commission today voted to propose an amendment to Rule 144 under the Securities Act of 1933 to revise the holding period determination for securities acquired upon the conversion or exchange of certain "market-adjustable securities." The proposed amendment is intended to reduce the risk of unregistered distributions in connection with sales of those securities. The Commission also voted to propose amendments to update and simplify the Form 144 filing requirements.

Federal Reserve Board Invites Public Comment On Proposed Amendments To Regulation D And Issues Final Rule Amending Regulation D With Regard To Reserve Requirement Ratios On Transaction Accounts

Date 22/12/2020

The Federal Reserve Board on Tuesday issued a notice of proposed rulemaking that requests public comment on proposed amendments to Regulation D (Reserve Requirements of Depository Institutions). Under the proposal, references to an "interest on required reserves" ("IORR") rate and to an "interest on excess reserves" ("IOER") rate would be replaced with a single "interest on reserve balances" ("IORB") rate. The proposed amendments would make other conforming changes, such as simplifying the formula used to calculate the amount of interest paid on balances maintained by or on behalf of eligible institutions in master accounts at Federal Reserve Banks. Comments on the proposed rulemaking will be accepted for 60 days after publication in the Federal Register, which is expected shortly.

Statement On NYSE Primary Direct Listing Proposal, SEC Commissioner Elad L. Roisman, Dec. 22, 2020

Date 22/12/2020

While many aspects of our equity markets have long benefited from innovation, innovation has managed to elude, to any significant extent, the primary offering process.  Until today.  NYSE’s proposal would provide an alternative means for companies listed on their exchange to raise equity capital in our public markets.  I support the approval of the exchange’s proposed rule change.

SEC: Dalia Blass To Conclude Tenure As Director Of The Division Of Investment Management - Under Director Blass's Leadership, The Division Undertook Numerous Initiatives Benefitting Main Street Investors

Date 22/12/2020

The Securities and Exchange Commission today announced that Dalia Blass, Director of the Division of Investment Management, will depart the SEC in January after leading the Division since September 2017. Under her leadership, the Division finalized more than 70 regulatory initiatives affecting investment companies and investment advisers.

Statement On The New Marketing Rule For Investment Advisers, SEC Commissioner Elad L. Roisman, Dec. 22, 2020

Date 22/12/2020

I am grateful to the staff of the Division of Investment Management (the “Division”) for working so hard to develop this final rule governing the way investment advisers advertise and market their investment advisory services and products.  I would also like to extend my thanks to our staff in the Division of Economic and Risk Analysis and the Office of the General Counsel, as well as to the many others at the agency who informed and contributed to this effort.  Additionally, let me express my gratitude to the commenters who engaged with this agency on just about every aspect of this rulemaking.  Your input has been invaluable to me as I have considered the Division’s recommendation.  Indeed, it reminds me of just how important the notice and comment process is to our rulemaking efforts.