Month: September 2011

Banking News – SEC Staff Issues Summary Report of Fee Staff’s Examinations of Each Nationally Recognizable Arithmetic Rating Establishment
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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
2011-199

Washington, D.C., Sept. 30, 2011 — The staff of the Securities and Chat Fee today issued a report shortening the staff’s observations and concerns arising from the examinations of ten credit rating agencies registered with the SEC as Nationally Recognizable Arithmetic Rating Organizations (“NRSROs”) and subject to Fee administration.

The report notes that despite changes by some of the examined credit rating agencies to improve their operations, Fee staff identified concerns at each of the NRSROs. These concerns built-in obvious failures in some instances to follow ratings methodologies and procedures, to make timely and right disclosures, to set up commanding domestic control structures for the rating process and to adequately manage conflicts of appeal. The report notes that the staff made various recommendations to the NRSROs to address the staff’s concerns and that in some cases the NRSROs have already taken steps to address such concerns.

“This report demonstrates the SEC’s enhanced administration of credit rating agencies,” said Carlo V. di Florio, Boss of the SEC’s Office of Falling in line Inspections and Examinations (OCIE). “We have recruited experts and strengthened the overall monitoring and examination process to better protect investors, ensure market integrity, and facilitate capital formation.”

The Fee staff conducted the examinations as vital by the 2010 Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Safeguard, which imposed new exposure, leak and examination equipment to enhance the parameter and administration of NRSROs. Among other things, the Dodd-Frank Act requires the Fee staff to examine each NRSRO at least annually and issue an annual report shortening the elemental findings of the examinations.

“We are today issuing the first of the Fee staff’s annual reports on the examinations of the NRSROs,” said Norm Champ, the Deputy Boss of OCIE. “We expect the credit rating agencies to address the concerns we have raised in a timely and commanding way, and we will be monitoring their movement as part of our ongoing annual examinations.”

Examination staff from the Fee’s Office of Falling in line Inspections and Examinations and NRSRO monitors from the Fee’s Rift of Trading and Markets conducted these examinations. The later staff made noteworthy donations to these examinations: Abe Losice, Rina Hussain, Jon Hertzke, David Beaning, Kenneth Godwin, Said Rafat, Natasha Kaden, Harriet Orol, Alan Dunetz, Diane Audino, Scott Davey, Kristin DeVitto, Ethan Allfree, Jennifer Fournier, Lisa Jordan, Kenny Sabogal, Bernard Bujack, Shanti Radkar, Jackie Sturgill, William Beggs, Scott Follin, Trinita Like, Jason Wentworth, Shipra Wells, Linda Heaphy and Steven Gilchrist.

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For more in rank about the report, contact:

Carlo V. di Florio

Boss, Office of Falling in line Inspections and Examinations

(202) 551-6200

Norm Champ

Deputy Boss, Office of Falling in line Inspections and Examinations

(212) 336-0446

Abe Losice

Supporter Boss, Office of Falling in line Inspections and Examinations

(202) 551-6422

Jon Hertzke

Senior Special Counsel, Office of Falling in line Inspections and Examinations

(202) 551-6247

SEC.gov Updates: Press Releases – http://www.sec.gov/news/press/2011/2011-199.htm

Banking News – SEC Staff Issues Risk Alert on Master/Sub-account Risks
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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
2011-198

Washington, D.C., Sept. 29, 2011 — The staff of the Securities and Chat Fee today issued a Risk Alert warning of noteworthy concerns a propos trading through sub-fiscal proclamation, and offered suggestions to help securities diligence firms address those risks.

Money laundering, insider trading, market management, account intrusions, unregistered broker-dealer try, and unnecessary control are all the makings risks linked with the master/sub-account trading model, according to the alert. Customers who open master fiscal proclamation with a registered broker-dealer usually subdivide it for use by party traders or groups of traders. In some instances, the sub-fiscal proclamation may be divided to such an extent that the master account consumer and the firm where the account is held might not know the self of the traders in the sub-fiscal proclamation.

“Even if master/sub-account provision have legitimate affair purposes, some customers may use them as vehicles for illegal try, or in an attempt to avoid or lessen dictatorial obligations and administration,” said Carlo di Florio, Boss of the SEC’s Office of Falling in line Inspections and Examinations, whose inhabitant examination staff issued the alert.

The alert includes suggestions for broker-dealers to address concerns arising from trading in sub-fiscal proclamation and to comply with the SEC’s Market Access Rule, which requires broker-dealers to have reins and procedures to limit risks linked with donation market access to customers, counting those with master/sub-fiscal proclamation.

“When a broker-dealer offers master/sub-fiscal proclamation, this includes an obligation to practically design reins and procedures that address the types of risks that we spot in this report. Our inhabitant examination staff intends to study the reins and procedures at broker-dealers that offer market access to master/sub-account customers,” Mr. di Florio said.

Doable approaches include:

• Obtaining and maintaining the names of all traders formal to trade in each master account, counting all sub-account traders; verifying the identities of all such traders, using fingerprints if apt, social class checks and interviews; and periodically read-through the names of all such traders through criminal and other databases.
   
• Monitoring trading patterns in both the master account and sub-fiscal proclamation for indications of insider trading, market management, or other suspicious try.
   
• Physically securing in rank of consumer or client systems and equipment.
   
• Establishing equipment that make lawful the trader’s self.
   
• Logging and tracking incidents of attempted hacking or other unofficial invasion-of-system by outside parties.
   
• Seminal that traders who have access to the broker-dealer’s trading system and equipment have expected schooling in areas noteworthy to their try, counting market trading rules.
   
• Evenly reviewing the effectiveness of all reins and procedures around sub-account due exactness and monitoring.
   
• Making written similes of all reins and procedures for sub-account due exactness and monitoring, counting the frequency of reviews, the self of those reliable for conducting such reviews, and a description of the review process.

This is the first in a long-lasting series of Risk Alerts that the SEC’s examination staff expects to issue.

The later staff contributed substantially to preparing this Risk Alert: Julius Leiman-Carbia, Robert Sollazzo, Rosanne Smith, George Kramer, Laura Magyar and John Guidroz. 

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For more in rank contact:

Carlo di Florio

Boss, Office of Falling in line Inspections and Examinations

202-551-6200

Julius Leiman-Carbia,

Normal Boss, Office of Falling in line Inspections and Examinations

212-336-0970

George Kramer

Senior Counsel to the Boss, Office of Falling in line Inspections and Examinations

202-551-8959

SEC.gov Updates: Press Releases – http://www.sec.gov/news/press/2011/2011-198.htm

Banking News – SEC to Hold Roundtable on Conflict Mineral deposits
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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
2011-197

Washington, D.C., Sept. 29, 2011 — The Securities and Chat Fee today announced that it will host a public roundtable next month to discuss the agency’s vital rulemaking under Section 1502 of the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Safeguard Act, which relates to exposure equipment a propos conflict mineral deposits originating in the Free State of the Congo and next-door countries.

The event will take place on October 18 from 12:30 p.m. to 5:15 p.m. and will provide a forum for various stakeholders to chat views and provide input on issues related to the SEC’s vital rulemaking. The panel schooling will focus on key dictatorial issues such as apt exposure approaches for the final rule, challenges in tracking conflict mineral deposits through the supply chain, and workable due exactness and other equipment related to the rulemaking.

“We are committed to writing an commanding rule as soon as doable, and the roundtable will help us do that,” said Meredith Cross, Boss of the SEC’s Rift of Corporation Finance.

Roundtable panelists are probable to reflect the views of uncommon constituencies, counting unnatural issuers, human rights organizations, and other stakeholders. A final agenda counting a list of participants will be announced closer to the date of the roundtable.

The roundtable will be held in the audience at the SEC’s center of operations at 100 F Street NE in Washington D.C. The roundtable will be open to the public with seating on a first-come, first-served basis, and the conversation also can be viewed via live webcast on the SEC website.

SEC.gov Updates: Press Releases – http://www.sec.gov/news/press/2011/2011-197.htm

Banking News – Fee Rate Advisory #4 for Fiscal Year 2012
&nbspCongress is now working on legislation to fund the Securities and Chat Fee for the first several weeks of FY 2012, which starts on Oct. 1. But, in any case of the outcome of this work, the fees paid under Section 31 of the Securities Chat Act will remain at their current rate until 60 days after the endorsement of a regular stealing for the Fee.
SEC.gov Updates: Press Releases – http://www.sec.gov/news/press/2011/2011-196.htm

Banking News – Fee Rate Advisory #3 for Fiscal Year 2012
&nbspAs earlier announced, early on Oct. 1, 2011, the fees that public companies and other issuers pay to catalog their securities with the Fee will be reduced to $114.60 per million dollars from their current rate of $116.10 per million dollars.
SEC.gov Updates: Press Releases – http://www.sec.gov/news/press/2011/2011-195.htm

Banking News – Brussels blow for the Huge Four
&nbspCommission plans largest fix of audit diligence since the end of Enron, tackling head-on the accounting ‘oligopoly’
Fiscal Times – Fiscal Air force – http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/ea9481f2-eb61-11e0-9a41-00144feab49a.html?ftcamp=rss

Banking News – Man Group doubles plotted job cuts
&nbspEurope’s largest hedge fund accelerates cost-cutting drive with 400 plotted job losses, or one in five employees
Fiscal Times – Fiscal Air force – http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/c914fa82-eb54-11e0-9a41-00144feab49a.html?ftcamp=rss

Banking News – Talks on Dow and S&P index link-up
&nbspMcGraw-Hill and CME are in talks to unite their respective index businesses in a joint venture, according to people habitual with the schooling
Fiscal Times – Fiscal Air force – http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/527bfa42-eae6-11e0-ac18-00144feab49a.html?ftcamp=rss

Banking News – KKR and BlackRock eye Axa Private Equity
&nbspThe US asset managers are among a handful of the makings bidders that have been questioned to submit first-round offers for the French group
Fiscal Times – Fiscal Air force – http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/7f10f92e-eabc-11e0-ac18-00144feab49a.html?ftcamp=rss