(Editor’s note: GuidedChoice, a retirement advisory firm, has been what it can to educated investors either directly or as a fiduciary partner to financial services firms. The company, based in San Diego, Calif., began its odyssey by applying institutional software and other IT such as Monte Carlo simulations to the retirement concerns of ordinary investors…. Read More >>
Apollo Global Management Reaches $52.7M Settlement with SEC
Private equity giant Apollo Global Management has settled with the SEC for $52.7 million for alleged fee and conflict of interest violations while the firm counters that it has been enhancing its disclosure and compliance efforts related to these matters long before the regulator’s inquiry began. SEC officials are charging that four private equity fund… Read More >>
FINRA to Shine More Light on Dark Pools
The industry is getting more transparency into dark pools and other alternative trading systems (ATSes) via the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA), which is expanding the data that it provides for over-the-counter (OTC) trading in equity securities. The additional transparency will cover approximately 20 percent of “all trading in National Market System equities,” according to… Read More >>
Blockchain’s Great Promise Faces Great Hurdles
The distributed ledger, or blockchain, as today’s hot financial services technology is also known, may lead to an Internet of Value. But first, important issues have to be resolved. So says Lael Brainard, one of the Federal Reserve’s seven governors. In a recent speech entitled “The Use of Distributed Ledger Technologies in Payment, Clearing, and… Read More >>
New Markit Service Targets the Demands of CRS
Markit is launching a due diligence solution intended to help financial services firms meet a forthcoming standard for the automated exchange of financial account information, particularly as it relates to know your customer (KYC) requirements. Created with help from officials at Barclays and Brown Brothers Harriman (BBH), the new offering is Markit│CTI Tax Solutions for… Read More >>
Give Investors Performance and Transparency or They Will Walk
Investors want to close the gap between their expectations and what they receive in fees and performance from their investment managers or they will walk. This is according to a new study about investors and their increasing demands upon investment management firms. Along with optimal performance, they want firms to provide “regular, clear communications about… Read More >>
ISDA to CFTC: Exempt SEF-Compliant European Venues
In publishing a set of principles intended to help derivatives trading firms compare U.S. and European Union (E.U.) trading venues, officials at the International Swaps and Derivatives Association (ISDA) are asking that CFTC officials consider a new exemption for established trading venues in Europe. “If EU trading venues are determined to achieve the same objectives… Read More >>
Why Regulators Are to Blame for the MiFID II Delay
While U.S. and European authorities are finally making progress in harmonizing key rules and regulations, it’s becoming painfully clear that the lack of an initial, collaborative response among regulators to the global recession is hitting home for all securities firms. A case in point is the recently announced (and expected) new deadline for the Markets… Read More >>
MiFID II Delay Causes Joy and Frustration
As expected, the European Commission has approved a one-year extension for compliance with the revised Markets in Financial Instruments Directive (MiFID II), and while some firms are relieved others are frustrated by the “hurry up and wait” dynamic. The delay is intended to give more time to industry participants grappling with “the exceptional technical implementation… Read More >>
Calpers Wants Private Equity Firms to be More Transparent
The California Public Employees’ Retirement System (Calpers), the largest public pension fund in the U.S., is looking for more transparency from private equity firms and calling for a more open reporting process going forward. That’s important because, in 2015, Calpers invested $27.6 billion in private equity. But as big as that investment seems, it’s less… Read More >>
