Chief valuation officers could become just as important as chief compliance officers for registered investment fund managers. They also might discover that, like chief compliance officers, the position may carry personal risk of bruising regulatory penalties. The emergence of this new C-class executive was predicted by panelists at a recent global fund valuation forum co-hosted in New […]
T. Rowe Price Investor Payback: The Unpushed Button
For fund managers, proxy voting isn’t a minor housekeeping matter. Depending on just how financially controversial the corporate agenda is, the vote can be as crucial to the health of investor portfolios as any trading decision. There is plenty of regulatory rulemaking to keep everyone’s eye on the ball so when something goes awry, it’s big […]
New US AML Rules: Tough Enough to Catch the Bad Guys?
The US Treasury’s new rules on how financial firms must handle their responsibilities to know their customers and prevent money-laundering will be operationally challenging to follow, but perhaps not entirely effective in identifying the bad guys. The most controversial aspect of the new requirements — finding out the identities of the beneficial owners of the customers […]
Bloomberg Tries Hand at Legal Entity Identifiers (Updated)
(Editor’s Note: This article has been updated to reflect additional information received after its initial publication). Does the financial market really need another New York City-based organization issuing legal entity identifiers (LEIs)? How Bloomberg intends to compete with established providers like the Depository Trust & Clearing Corporation (DTCC), London Stock Exchange and Germany’s WMDatenservice is […]
Research Payments in Europe: Can CSAs Survive?
Asset managers of European funds may be breathing a sigh of relief thinking that European regulators will allow them to keep their commission sharing agreements (CSAs) to pay for research they use to make investment decisions for their clients. The reality is not so simple. As currently implemented, the CSAs may not comply with all […]
DOL’s New Fiduciary Standard: Devil in the Word
What does it take to be a fiduciary to a retirement plan for the first time? Broker-dealers and other investment advisors that give clients of retirement plans recommendations on what assets to buy and sell will be struggling to answer this question as they create policies and procedures to fulfill the new fiduciary standard of […]
New EU Insider Trading Rules Challenge: How to Monitor Intent?
No harm, no foul. That is the premise of how regulators typically work when it comes to deciding whether to fine a firm for wrongdoing. However, when it comes to new European regulations prohibiting insider trading and market manipulation, that will soon no longer be the case. The new European Market Abuse Regulation (MAR), effective […]
Mutual Funds to SEC: Change Math on Swaps Exposure
Not all derivative contracts are created equal. That is the message mutual fund managers are giving the US Securities and Exchange Commission about its proposal to limit their exposure to derivatives. The SEC fears the growth in the use of derivatives by mutual funds and other registered investment fund advisers leading to greater financial losses. […]
Hedge Fund Managers: Five Areas of SEC Exam Focus
We have nothing to fear as much as the Securities and Exchange Commission itself. That is what hedge fund managers should be thinking about the US regulatory agency, warn legal experts. “A little paranoia will go a long way to ensuring they are prepared for a grueling round of exams this year,” says Ron Geffner, […]
The Derivatives ID Dilemma: Industry Accord Suggests an ISIN Solution
Is the International Securities Identification Number (ISIN) not fit for purpose for identifying certain types of derivatives, as claimed by some partisans for other identifiers or just “concerned citizens” of the derivatives realm? Or is the only possible solution for regulatory reporting requirements a Unique Product Identifier (UPI) based on the descriptive taxonomy developed by […]