The US Securities and Exchange Commission’s recent guidance on proxy voting may have unintentionally raised the issue of whether fund managers are meeting their fiduciary obligations when they vote in one-off voluntary corporate action events. Compliance managers at several US fund management firms tell FinOps Report that following the publication of the SEC’s publication of […]
State Street’s US$88M Fine Highlights Deceptive “Pass-Along” Custody Fees
How can a global custodian bank convince clients for almost two decades that a twenty-five cent cost to transmit a message through the SWIFT network transmission is really worth a $5 “pass-along” fee? Easily, when fund managers aren’t paying attention and no one at the custodian bank is minding the shop. That’s no longer the […]
IHS Markit: Taking the Distress Out of Distressed Loan Settlement
T+66. That’s on average how long it takes to settle a trade in a distressed loan. Now technology and data giant IHS Markit is hoping to reduce the timeframe by leveraging its existing platform for par loans. The settlement cycle for distressed loans is even longer than what it takes a package to travel to […]
Free Webinar: Six Practices to the Best Cyber Defense From Hackers and Regulators
Is your IT team overwhelmed keeping your network/cloud safe from sophisticated hackers? Are your C-suite executives struggling to keep regulators and customers satisfied all confidential data and assets are properly protected? Tony Pietrocola, president of Agile1, has devised six proven practices to mitigate the chance your organization will become the next cyberattack headline, forced to […]
Hedge Funds: Proactive Operational Risk, Finally
Failed trade settlements, bad valuations, bad reconciliations, shoddy vendor management and simple forgetfulness. These glitches aren’t new for hedge fund managers. What is new is that they are turning to management and technology consultants for help. As regulators, such as the US Securities and Exchange Commission, look under the hood during exams and investors become […]
Europe’s SFTR: Coming to US Shores?
US securities finance operations and compliance managers had better brace themselves for a US version of Europe’s Securities Finance Transaction Regulation (SFTR), caution industry consultants and market practicioners. So far, US post-trade operations and compliance managers have been spared from dealing with a US equivalent to the onerous SFTR. However, they shouldn’t be lulled into a […]
FINRA’s TBA Margin Rules: Stuck in Government Limbo
(Editor’s update 1/31/2019) The Financial Industry Regulatory Authority has decided to give collateral operations and compliance managers a temporary break from complying with new margin requirements for covered agency transactions. FINRA has filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission a request to extend by an extra year to March 25, 2020 the implementation date of […]
Reg Compliance 2019: Tips to Ease Data Pain
When it comes to handling the data challenges inherent in regulatory compliance, 2019 will no exception for middle and back-office buy and sell-side operations, compliance and technology managers. While the rules of MIFID II and EMIR likely took up much of their attention over the past few years, a survey of about fifty operations, compliance […]
Treasury Operations: From Basics to Optimal
Where are my cash and securities and am I achieving the best bang for the buck? Treasury management staffers at hedge fund management shops are belatedly realizing that the difference between either knowing or not knowing the answer to the interrelated questions could translate into the difference between average and higher investment performance. The savviest […]
Global Network Management: Artificial Intelligence the Charm?
For global custody network managers, analyzing the tsunami of data on dozens of local agent banks and markets to ensure the safety of client assets remains a sore spot. The use of artificial intelligence appears to be an elusive ideal, acknowledge panelists and attendees at a recent global custody event in New York hosted by […]