The SEC Office of Investor Education and Advocacy issued an investor bulletin to provide investors with basic information to help them make informed financial decisions and avoid common scams. The bulletin was composed of ten points: checking the background of an investment professional is easy and free through public disclosure websites, including Investment Adviser Public Disclosure and BrokerCheck; it can be costly to ignore the fees associated with buying, owning and selling an investment product; diversification can help reduce the overall risk of an investment portfolio; promises of high

On July 16, 2014, the European Council convened a meeting in Brussels and announced a number of measures against Russia for its failure to "actively use its influence over illegally armed groups . . . in order to achieve a rapid de-escalation" of the crisis in Ukraine. The meeting did not result in any immediate designations, but it did produce a commitment to expand restrictive measures against entities deemed responsible for the instability in Ukraine. The Council is now tasked with adopting "the necessary legal instruments and [deciding] by the end of July on a first list of entities and

Research and consultancy firm Prequin issued a report regarding hedge fund managers' responses to and compliance with the Alternative Investment Fund Managers Directive ("AIFMD") as the July 22, 2014 implementation date approaches. The report surveyed 150 global hedge fund managers and addressed topics including: the outlook on AIFMD as a regulatory framework and its impact; concerns about AIFMD; preparations for compliance; and plans for marketing in the EU. Although, according to the report, uncertainty about AIFMD is high, nearly 58% of Europe-based managers are already compliant with AIFMD

SEC Chair Mary Jo White issued a statement on the fourth anniversary of the passage of the Dodd-Frank Act. Chair White stated that, after Dodd-Frank was passed, the SEC implemented new restrictions on the proprietary activities of financial institutions ( e.g., the Volcker Rule), created a new regulatory framework for municipal advisors, issued new rules for previously unregulated derivatives and began implementing additional executive compensation disclosures. Moving forward, Chair White stated, the SEC "must work with intensity" and be more deliberate in considering and prioritizing the

FINRA announced the formation of a 13-member Arbitration Task Force to consider possible changes to its arbitration forum with the goal of improving transparency, impartiality and efficiency. The task force is composed of seven public members and six industry members. At the conclusion of its review next year, the task force will make recommendations to the National Arbitration and Mediation Committee, FINRA's Standing Board Advisory Committee. See: FINRA Press Release.