Insights
The SEC’s Six Month Review of Reg BI and Form CRS
Patomak Post Laura MagyarThe Securities and Exchange Commission and the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority indicated that firms appear to be on the right track with Reg BI and Form CRS compliance, but also offered requirement reminders and observations of industry practices to aid firms in meeting regulatory expectations. Around the rules’ implementation, the SEC’s Office of Compliance Inspections and Examinations and FINRA have been conducting exams to understand and assess how firms are complying with the rules.
When a Penny Saved Becomes a Penny Burned
Patomak Post Laura MagyarAs firms grapple with market gyrations and declining revenues, many are engaging in the hunt to cut costs. It may sound self-serving for a compliance consultancy to sound the warning against looking for those savings in a firm’s compliance budget, but our caution comes from experience.
Semi-Transparent ETFs: The Journey Begins
Patomak Post Tim TianWhile non- and semi-transparent exchange-traded funds (“STETFs”) have been present since early 2016 with the introduction of NextShares by Eaton Vance, the past several years have not seen a warm embrace of this novel idea by fund families. Nonetheless, many have argued that for STETFs, the question was not “if,” but “when,” and it appears that the answer is now.
The SEC Lifts a Weight From Shareholder Shoulders
Patomak Post Patomak Global PartnersRecently, the SEC staff lifted a huge weight off of the backs of long-term closed-end fund (CEF) shareholders by issuing a statement that it would not recommend enforcement action if these funds took advantage of another means to ward off activists seeking to change the fundamental nature of the CEF – actions that often harm those long-term investors.
Fund Valuation Comes Into Focus
Patomak Post Patomak Global PartnersThe COVID-19 pandemic has muddied many waters. There is more uncertainty than ever about school, work, life in general. That’s why a recent proposal from the Securities and Exchange Commission was such a breath of fresh air, even though it’s entirely unrelated to the pandemic. In fact, the agency has been working on providing clarity on fair valuation – how fund boards or their advisers value some portfolio securities – for years. The proposal brings welcome clarity to a complex area of fund governance and, particularly as a mutual fund independent director, I’m grateful for the SEC’s initiative.
Investment News Opinion: SEC Should Accelerate its Late Leap to Electronic Delivery
News Paul AtkinsPaul Atkins writes in an opinion piece in Investment News that the SEC could do more to make e-delivery the default option for shareholder communications, while preserving shareholders’ right to request printed material.
Investment News: Financial Industry Opponents Remain Wary of SEC’s Crackdown on Share-Class Disclosure
News Patomak Global Partners“The SEC conducted a campaign of regulation through enforcement that leaves more questions than it answers,” Paul Atkins, chief executive of Patomak Global Partners, said in a statement. “The Commission lost a lot of credibility by browbeating advisors through make-it-up-as-you-go disclosure requirements and never-before-enunciated duties imposed on an entire industry.”
Law360: End Big Game Trophy Hunting in Delaware and Other American Courts
News Paul AtkinsWhile Delaware’s hunters are focused on deer and duck this fall, it appears that other hunters pursuing a highly valued legal prize in the state might be coming up empty handed this season.
Delaware Federal District Court Judge Richard Andrews in an August 2019 merger case, Scott v. DST Systems, Inc. et al, rejected plaintiffs’ request for payment of their fees, ruling that the lawyers did not produce a “substantial benefit” to shareholders.
