Mercatus on Policy published a policy brief, by American Enterprise Institute scholar James K. Glassman and Mercatus Center scholar Hester Peirce , that outlines the regulations that give power to proxy advisory firms, discusses the nature and adverse consequences of that power, and offers suggestions for reform. The policy brief discusses the two major firms that dominate the proxy advisory industry and concludes that the firms' power derives from growth in the proportion of shares owned by institutions, the growing number of proxy votes, and the regulatory push toward reliance on outside

Over the past two days, two Senate subcommittees held separate hearings on the topic of high-frequency trading ("HFT") in the U.S. equity markets. On Tuesday, June 17, the Senate's Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations held a hearing titled "Conflicts of Interest, Investor Loss of Confidence, and High-Speed Trading in U.S. Stock Markets." The hearing focused on how brokers' incentives resulting from exchanges' maker-taker fee structures and payment for order flow clashed with brokers' duty of best execution to their customers. The hearing was conducted by Senators Carl Levin (D-MI), Ron

At SIFMA's Tech 2014 Conference, SIFMA Executive Vice President Randy Snook spoke about how to maximize the potential of technology while managing the inherent risk. According to Mr. Snook, while a tremendous amount of innovation has made the U.S. equity markets more efficient and liquid, it has also established a complex structure that requires review and maintenance. Mr. Snook stated that the Consolidated Audit Trail, when built, will provide regulators with the trade and order data that is needed to surveil the markets. Additionally, Mr. Snook noted, SIFMA has announced its support for a

The IOSCO Research Department published a staff working paper, titled "A Survey of Securities Markets Risk Trends 2014: Methodology and Detailed Results," which provides a detailed analysis of responses to IOSCO's annual survey on market trends and emerging risks. The working paper on the survey, which was conducted in March 2014, is based on some 200 responses and aims to gather views on emerging trends within securities markets to help identify risks that may not be captured by normal statistical analysis or desk research. The main points: concerns about issues considered "macro-prudential,"

In a development in the lawsuit brought by SIFMA, ISDA and the Institution of International Bankers ("Associations") against the CFTC's Cross-Border Guidance, the U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia ("Court") granted the motion for leave to file the amicus brief in support of the CFTC that was submitted by Congressional Democrats in March 2014. Additionally, the CFTC submitted a notice of supplementary authority to "bring to the Court's attention" the June 4, 2014 decision of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit (the "Second Circuit") in Lotes Co., Ltd. v