In its Chief Counsel Advice (CCA 201423019), the IRS concluded that a holding company with ownership of the majority interest in a partnership that originated and purchased mortgage loans was not a dealer even though the partnership itself was a dealer under Section 475. According to the IRS, although the ordinary character of the marked securities held by the partnership flowed through to the holding company, the dealer activity of the partnership was not attributable to, and did not flow through to, the holding company. Further, modifications of mortgage loans that were held by trusts as sub

F ederal Reserve Governor Daniel K. Tarullo delivered a speech at the Association of American Law Schools' Midyear Meeting, in which he discussed how finance and financial regulation affect corporate governance and why special measures are needed as part of an effective prudential regulatory system. Stressing the need for further collaboration between corporate and financial law scholarship, Governor Tarullo emphasized the centrality of risk in his description of the relationship between financial regulation and corporate governance. In his remarks, Governor Tarullo paid particular attention

On May 29, 2014, SEC Commissioner Kara M. Stein delivered remarks before FINRA's Division of Market Regulation in which she discussed the SEC-FINRA partnership, the limitations of the organizations' existing rules, and enforcement issues, as well as addressing the question, "Are the markets rigged?" Commissioner Stein discussed a number of the challenges faced by the SEC in its enforcement effort, citing as a major issue the fact that most violations require proof of intent. Commissioner Stein suggested that the SEC and FINRA reexamine existing rules to ensure that regulators haven't "made it

MSRB announced the launch of a new electronic tool to help retail investors gauge the trade price of a municipal bond more quickly and easily. Using MSRB's Electronic Municipal Market Access (EMMA®) website, investors can use the tool to assess the potential value of municipal securities that trade infrequently by finding recent trade prices of municipal securities with similar characteristics, including maturity date, interest rate, state and other features. Users can then select up to five matching securities to view a side-by-side comparison of their prices and yields or to chart their

The FDIC announced changes to the deposit insurance education materials, available on the FDIC's website, that are designed to improve the accessibility and presentation of deposit insurance information to the general public. See : FDIC Press Release.