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Congress hints at regulating private equity
WASHINGTON — Unions are hoping that pressure from Congress on private-equity funds will lead to better pay and benefits for workers, including more unionization.
Advisers often skirt compliance rules, survey finds
NEW YORK — Sick and tired of complying with an increasingly complex regulatory framework, many financial advisers knowingly sidestep their firms’ compliance policies and sometimes show little regard for rules and regulations, according to a new survey of advisers and other financial services professionals.
NASAA questions SRO-regulation harmonization
State regulators are questioning whether some of the “harmonization” of rules of the regulatory operations of NASD and the New York Stock Exchange will harm investor protection
Fed tightens lending standards
The Federal Reserve Board will consider new regulations to tighten mortgage-lending standards, said Fed chairman Ben Bernanke in a letter released Friday.
Nasdaq to purchase OMX
Nasdaq Stock Market Inc. has agreed to buy Nordic markets owner OMX AB for $3.7 billion, after failing on an earlier bid to purchase the London Stock Exchange.
Brokerages shuffle fee accounts
Brokerage firms, preparing to transition existing customers into alternative fee programs, are putting the freeze on new fee-based brokerage accounts.
SIFMA defends mandatory-arbitration system
NEW YORK — As some U.S. senators find fault with the arbitration system that resolves client disputes with broker-dealers, the brokerage industry’s largest trade group is defending the process.
Capital requirements worry small firms
IRVINE, Calif. — Small brokerage firms are concerned about possible increases in net capital requirements that the Securities and Exchange Commission has proposed.
SRO merger now in SEC’s court
Now that a lawsuit challenging the merger of the regulatory units of NASD and the New York Stock Exchange has been dismissed, attention has turned to the Securities and Exchange Commission, where NASD bylaw changes needed to seal the deal are pending approval.
To appeal or not to appeal
With the deadline bearing down to initiate legal action to block a federal court’s decision on the legality of fee-based brokerage accounts, the brokerage industry is looking for guidance on how to proceed.
Cox, Schapiro tackle disclosure at ICI meeting
The Securities and Exchange Commission is examining disclosures for 401(k) plans and is looking at ways to provide 401(k) information using interactive software, SEC Chairman Christopher Cox said last week.
Funds slow pace of hiring legal, compliance staff
Mutual fund companies are starting to slow the pace at which they hire legal and compliance officers, according to several industry experts. With the mutual fund scandals receding into the past, such a trend was inevitable, they said.
New service agreement at TD Ameritrade causes flap
Amid protest from its advisers that they are being asked to assume too much liability, TD Ameritrade Institutional is going back to the drawing board with its new service agreement.
Equity index annuity insurers are facing more lawsuits
New accusations against equity index annuity sellers may lead to regulatory grief comparable to what property-casualty firms suffered during the contingent- commission scandal a couple of years ago, industry observers say.
Separately managed account quandary
While advisers want their separately managed accounts made available on unified managed account systems, SMA managers fear that that will result in a loss of control over how their products are marketed.
NASD expands broker, firm disciplinary information
IRVINE, Calif. — NASD is expanding the disciplinary information it discloses about brokers and firms.
Small firms upset by an NASD hiring
NASD has hired a former board member as a consultant, raising questions about conflicts of interest and concerns about how well small firms have been represented in the organization.
Fund industry awaits simplified prospectus
Industry leaders eagerly are awaiting a proposal that would allow mutual funds to provide a two-page prospectus in lieu of the lengthy one now required, a concept that could save millions of dollars in costs.
House Democrats eyeing reduction in the AMT
WASHINGTON — House Democrats are hoping to appeal to the middle class with a plan to shift to wealthy taxpayers the responsibility for paying the alternative minimum tax, but financial advisers in general think that it is a bad idea.
Battle lines drawn on appeal of broker ruling
NEW YORK — As the May 14 deadline looms for the Securities and Exchange Commission to appeal the overturning of the broker-dealer exemption rule, supporters and opponents of the rule have been busy making their case in the court of public opinion.
