The work of stock transfer agents may require a lot of detail management, as well as complex interactions with issuers, shareholders and various intermediaries, but the field isn’t likely to be associated with investor fraud. That is, until now. Two commissioners at the US Securities and Exchange Commission are urging the agency to take a harder look […]
AML Compliance: Big Job Market, Big Hurdles
For those attracted to a career of hunting down criminals, law enforcement isn’t the only choice. Finance has always been both a juicy target and a obvious tool for white-collar criminals so Wall Street’s focus on anti-money laundering compliance has been years in the making, but it wasn’t until after the 2008 to 2009 financial crisis that regulators intensified […]
Reporting Security-Based Swaps: Dissent Brews with SEC
Security-based swaps might comprise a small fraction of the entire multi-trillion dollar over-the-counter derivatives market, but that’s little solace to operations, IT and regulatory specialists who will eventually have to follow the Securities and Exchange Commission’s rules on reporting transactions in these contracts to a swap data repository (SDR). Just who must do the reporting, […]
When Buying Cybersecurity Insurance: Caveat Emptor
The theft of personal details of millions of individuals in a U.S. government database might sound shocking, but it really isn’t given the latest stream of well-publicized hacking events in the retail, financial and insurance industries. Neiman Marcus, eBay, Home Depot, JP Morgan Chase, Sony and Anthem are among the high-profile casualties. Given that a cyber […]
New Mutual Fund Reporting Rules: New Operational Angst
If US mutual funds and other registered investment funds feel relief they have been spared from the cumbersome rules for systemically important financial institutions, they may not for much longer. Hefty new disclosure requirements are on the horizon, if the US Securities and Exchange Commission has its way. Although the SEC is seeking industry input before […]
Want to Price Shares Late: Get the Post Office to Help Out
US mutual fund complexes are supposed to give investors who buy and sell shares the price of the shares on the day they receive their orders. So says the US Investment Company Act of 1940. But insurance giant Nationwide Insurance found a creative way of not doing so. It didn’t have to rely on technology, […]
Outsourced Collateral Management: A Calculated Choice
When it comes to collateral management for fund managers, why not let someone else do the work? Considering the cost and administrative burden of this complex processing function, outsourcing sounds like a great idea. There are certainly some mega custodians and other managed service experts only too willing to help out. However, in this apparent […]
Europe’s Target2Securities: On Target or Not?
Will T2S launch as scheduled? Nine years after the European Central Bank proposed the initially controversial idea of launching a single centralized settlement platform for domestic and cross-border European securities transactions, the plans to launch might have hit a snag. It wouldn’t be the first time, but this time it would be at the 11th […]
Unbundling Commissions from Research: Big Pain, but Any Gain?
Customers are supposed to understand and agree on exactly what they are paying for. Right. It sounds like a truism, but it isn’t always true. Deals may contain perks or incentives that are never explicitly detailed in the agreement. If they suddenly have to be spelled out and agreed upon, item by item with the […]
Crime Prevention: Breaching the Veil of Omnibus Accounts
For operations and compliance professionals, the definition of financial crime is rapidly expanding to meet the threats of cyber crime, but the more common threat is money laundering or fraudulent wire transfers conducted by unscrupulous companies or individuals. For depositories and custodian banks, this traditional abuse of the financial system has acquired an additional level of […]