On April 3, 2024, the Securities and Exchange Commission announced charges against a registered investment adviser for recordkeeping failures regarding personal device communications and pre-clearance of securities transactions in employees’ personal accounts. The firm was charged and agreed to pay a $6.5 million dollar penalty and to implement improvements to …

Background On March 18, 2024, the Securities and Exchange Commission announced settled charges against two SEC registered investment advisers for making false and misleading statements about their purported use of artificial intelligence (“AI”). The firms agreed to settle the SEC’s charges and pay $400,000 in total civil penalties. Cause of …

On February 13, 2024, the U.S. Department of Treasury’s Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) proposed a rule to combat criminals and foreign adversaries from exploiting the U.S. financial system through investment advisers (the “FinCEN Rule”). The FinCEN Rule will add system transparency and help law enforcement identify risks from anonymous …

The SEC approved eleven spot Bitcoin ETFs on January 10, 2024. As a result, investment advisers may be curious about whether or how to integrate Bitcoin ETFs into client portfolios. This blog is intended to provide an update on the regulatory landscape and inform advisers how to fulfill their compliance …

Bitcoin and other Cryptocurrencies With recent developments in the regulatory, legal, and compliance landscape surrounding Bitcoin and a spot Bitcoin ETF (i.e., an ETF backed by physical Bitcoins. If the value of the digital coins backing the ETF rises, the value of the investment will generally be expected to increase), …

The Department of Labor (“DOL”) rule requirement continues with the fast-approaching filing date for an investment adviser’s initial Retrospective Review. While we anticipate assisting many investment advisers with their completion of this new requirement, it is important to understand its purpose and components. For this reason, I asked our colleague, …