FINRA announced that it sanctioned and fined two firms, Triad Advisors and Securities America, for failing to supervise the use of consolidated reporting systems, which resulted in statements containing inaccurate valuations being sent to customers, as well as for failing to retain the consolidated reports in accordance with securities laws. A consolidated report is a single document that combines information regarding most or all of a customer's financial holdings, regardless of where those assets are held. Both Triad Advisors and Securities America had a consolidated report system that

The Government of the British Virgin Islands ("BVI") announced that, on March 6, 2014, it concluded negotiations with the United States and initialed the final text of an Intergovernmental Agreement ("IGA") with respect to FATCA. The IGA is a Model 1B Form IGA (nonreciprocal), that will require BVI financial institutions required to comply with FATCA to provide certain information with respect to U.S. account holders to the BVI International Tax Authority, which will automatically exchange such information with the United States. According to the BVI, the IGA provides for various exceptions

SIFMA submitted comments to the MSRB on a draft proposal for MSRB Rule G-42 regarding the standards of conduct and duties of municipal advisors when engaging in municipal advisory activities other than the undertaking of solicitations. According to the letter, SIFMA supports the MSRB's efforts to develop a framework for the regulation of municipal advisors; however, SIFMA stated that it is concerned about certain aspects of the proposed rule, including that: the rule would improperly impose a fiduciary duty on municipal advisors providing advice to obligated persons; the proposed blanket

SIFMA submitted comments to the SEC, on the SEC's draft of the "Strategic Plan: Fiscal Years 2014-2018," to provide input for achieving some of the goals outlined in the draft plan as well as identify issues "critical to SIFMA members that fall within one or more of the SEC's strategic goals and underlying objectives." SIFMA suggested that the draft plan should address: implementing a uniform fiduciary standard; looking at qualitative factors in addition to quantitative factors and economic impacts in cost-benefit analyses; and coordinating the SEC's Section 913 efforts with the Department of

SIFMA, the Futures Industry Association ("FIA") and the Financial Services Roundtable ("FSR") (collectively, the "Associations") submitted comments to the CFTC on its staff advisory issued on November 14, 2013. The comments concern the applicability of CFTC rules to activity within the U.S. of CFTC-registered swap dealers ("SDs") and major swap participants ("MSPs") that are outside the U.S. The Associations stated that they are greatly concerned by the CFTC's introduction of a personnel-based test to the cross-border application of its swaps rules, and that they believe that the CFTC has