The House Financial Services Committee approved a bill that would codify expiring SEC no-action relief that (i) excludes broker-dealers who are compensated for research services from the definition of "investment adviser" and (ii) allows broker-dealers to continue accepting payments for research reports in order to comply with international regulations, including MiFID and MiFID II.
The Financial Information Forum reiterated its opposition to a FINRA proposal requiring new order-routing disclosures for OTC and National Market System equity securities orders.
Industry groups and market participants urged reconsideration of SEC equity market rule proposals on best execution, variable minimum pricing for NMS quotations and trades, order competition and order execution disclosure.
In a position paper, SIFMA and the accounting firm Ernst and Young assessed the current state of corporate action announcement and dissemination policies in the United States and called for more industry standardization.
The Financial Information Forum urged FINRA to adopt a FINRA proposed version of TRACE reporting requirements for delayed Treasury spot trades.