The CFTC proposal to amend the material terms for which counterparties must resolve discrepancies when engaging in portfolio reconciliation was published in the Federal Register. The proposed rule generally would codify relief granted previously by CFTC staff in their Letter No. 13-31, subject to certain modifications, and allow firms to exclude certain information reported under CFR Part 45 ("Swap Data Recordkeeping and Reporting Requirements") for purposes of portfolio reconciliations under CFTC Rule 23.502 ("Portfolio Reconciliation").

The SEC is seeking comment on the MSRB's proposals to Rules G-20 ("Gifts, Gratuities and Non-Cash Compensation") and G-8 ("Books and Records to Be Made by Brokers, Dealers and Municipal Securities Dealers"). The rule proposals are generally intended to extend existing prohibitions to additional classes of persons ( e.g., municipal advisors) and to conform the MSRB Rules to the comparable FINRA Rules. Comments on the proposal are due October 13, 2015.

The House Financial Services Committee held a hearing titled "The Dodd-Frank Act Five Years Later: Are We More Free?" This is the third installment of the Committee's five recent hearings on the Dodd-Frank Act. Committee Chair Jeb Hensarling (R-TX) opened the hearing by asserting that "Dodd-Frank exemplifies the insidious belief among many Washington elites that the American people cannot be trusted to make good decisions for themselves so government must do it for them." Congressman Hensarling condemned the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau and the Financial Stability Oversight Council as

The North American Securities Administrators Association ("NASAA") found that senior investors continue to be a primary target for fraudulent investment pitches. NASAA's report, which includes responses from 49 jurisdictions throughout the United States, indicated that seniors were targeted in one-quarter of the relevant enforcement actions. Unregistered securities, in the form of promissory notes, private offerings or investment contracts continue to be the most common product involved in senior abuse cases. In fact, more than half of all reported enforcement actions that involved a senior

SEC Chair Mary Jo White stated that she "strongly support[s]" the recommendations of SIFMA and the Investment Company Institute ("ICI") regarding industry efforts to shorten the settlement cycle for numerous types of securities. Chair White urged the Industry Steering Committee ("ISC") to continue its efforts examined in its White Paper, "Shortening the Settlement Cycle: The Move to T+2," to shorten the settlement cycle from T+3 to T+2. Chair White encouraged the ISC to (i) build on the high-level Migration Timeline contained in the White Paper and (ii) keep the SEC staff updated with a