News Centre

Ontario Securities Commission Proposes New Whistleblower Program For Public Comment

Date 03/02/2015

The Ontario Securities Commission (OSC) today released OSC Staff Consultation Paper 15-401, which proposes a new whistleblower program that would encourage the reporting of serious misconduct of Ontario securities law to the OSC.  Under the program, a whistleblower could be awarded a financial incentive of up to $1.5 million upon the final resolution of an administrative enforcement matter.

SEC Names David Grim As Acting Director Of The Division Of Investment Management

Date 03/02/2015

The Securities and Exchange Commission today announced that David Grim has been named as Acting Director of the Division of Investment Management.  He replaces Norm Champ, the division’s former director, who left the SEC at the end of January.

Ontario Securities Commission Announces Commissioner Appointments

Date 03/02/2015

Ontario Securities Commission (OSC) Chair Howard I. Wetston, Q.C., today announced the following appointments to the OSC.

NZX January 2015 Shareholder Metrics

Date 03/02/2015

Please find attached Shareholder Metrics for January 2015 which have been amended to correct the new debt issues figure.

Remarks For Acting Associate Attorney General Stuart Delery Press Conference Announcing Settlement With S&P

Date 03/02/2015

Thank you, Mr. Attorney General.

During the lead-up to the financial crisis, S&P served as a gatekeeper in the world of sophisticated finance.  S&P repeatedly promised that its ratings were objective, independent, and not influenced by S&P’s relationships with the investment banks that issued the securities.  When the department brought this suit, we alleged, to the contrary, that S&P limited, adjusted and delayed updates to the ratings criteria and analytical models it used in order to preserve market share and profits.  In addition, S&P issued inflated ratings on billions of dollars’ worth of securities despite knowing that the quality of the underlying assets was impaired and that the ratings would not hold.  Put simply: we brought this case because S&P committed fraud. 

McGraw Hill Financial And S&P Ratings Reach Settlements With DOJ, Attorneys General Of 19 States And District Of Columbia And With CalPERS

Date 03/02/2015

McGraw Hill Financial, Inc. (NYSE: MHFI) (the "Company") today announced that it and its subsidiary Standard & Poor's Financial Services LLC ("S&P Financial Services"), which houses the Company's business unit Standard & Poor's Ratings Services ("S&P Ratings"), have reached a settlement with the U.S. Department of Justice ("DOJ") which fully resolves the DOJ's February 2013 lawsuit regarding ratings issued and surveilled by S&P Ratings in the 2004-2007 time period relating to certain U.S. residential mortgage-backed securities and U.S. collateralized debt obligations. The settlement also resolves the lawsuits filed by the Attorneys General of 19 States and theDistrict of Columbia, most of which were filed in early 2013 following the DOJ lawsuit. 

Remarks For US Attorney General Eric Holder Press Conference Announcing Settlement With S&P

Date 03/02/2015

Good morning, and thank you all for being here.  I am joined today by my colleagues from the Justice Department: Acting Associate Attorney General [Stuart] Delery and Acting U.S. Attorney [Stephanie] Yonekura of the Central District of California.  I also want to thank our distinguished state partners – including Attorneys General George Jepsen, of Connecticut; Jim Hood, of Mississippi; Gregory Zoeller, of Indiana; and Kathleen Kane, of Pennsylvania.

CFTC Charges California Residents Christopher Valois And Cynthia Wong And Their Companies With Fraud And Registration Violations - Husband And Wife Team Allegedly Stole More Than $300,000 Of The $750,000 Their Customers Invested - Federal Court Enters Emergency Order Freezing Defendants’ Assets And Protecting Books And Records

Date 03/02/2015

The U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) today announced that Judge Cormac J. Carney of the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California entered an emergency restraining Order freezing assets and prohibiting the destruction or concealment of books and records of Defendants Christopher Valois, Cynthia Wong, and their companies, Bertram Trade LLC (Bertram) andChurchhill Commodities Trading LLC (Churchhill), all of Orange County California. The judge set a hearing date for February 12, 2015.

Justice Department And State Partners Secure $1.375 Billion Settlement With S&P for Defrauding Investors In The Lead Up To The Financial Crisis

Date 03/02/2015

Attorney General Eric Holder announced today that the Department of Justice and 19 states and the District of Columbia have entered into a $1.375 billion settlement agreement with the rating agency Standard & Poor’s Financial Services LLC, along with its parent corporation McGraw Hill Financial Inc., to resolve allegations that S&P had engaged in a scheme to defraud investors in structured financial products known as Residential Mortgage-Backed Securities (RMBS) and Collateralized Debt Obligations (CDOs).  The agreement resolves the department’s 2013 lawsuit against S&P, along with the suits of 19 states and the District of Columbia.  Each of the lawsuits allege that investors incurred substantial losses on RMBS and CDOs for which S&P issued inflated ratings that misrepresented the securities’ true credit risks.  Other allegations assert that S&P falsely represented that its ratings were objective, independent and uninfluenced by S&P’s business relationships with the investment banks that issued the securities.

CalPERS to Recover More Than $300 Million From Standard & Poor's In Investment Ratings Settlements

Date 03/02/2015

The California Public Employees’ Retirement System (CalPERS) is poised to receive approximately $301 million in damages from Standard & Poor's (S&P) and parent company McGraw-Hill Financial, the result of settlements in cases against S&P that stemmed from its rating of mortgage-backed and other securities prior to the financial crisis.