IOSCO published a consultation report titled "A Comparison and Analysis of Prudential Standards in the Securities Sector," which contains a comparative analysis of the key prudential/capital frameworks for securities firms. The two primary goals of the report were (i) to undertake a high-level comparative analysis of the key prudential/capital frameworks for securities firms for the purposes of highlighting similarities, differences and gaps; and (ii) to reach conclusions about key themes and issues identified in the comparative analysis and to use them to perform a high-level conceptual

FINRA filed with the SEC a proposed rule change to amend FINRA Rule 2210 ("Communications with the Public") and FINRA Rule 2214 ("Requirements for the Use of Investment Analysis Tools"). The rule change would amend Rule 2210 to exclude from the filing requirements any research reports concerning only securities listed on a national securities exchange, other than those that must be filed pursuant to Investment Company Act Section 24(b) ("Registration of Securities under Securities Act of 1933"). The proposed rule would also clarify that free writing prospectuses that are exempt from filing

The SEC charged top executives at AgFeed Industries with conducting an accounting fraud in which they repeatedly reported fake revenues from their China operations in order to meet financial targets and prop up the stock price. The SEC found that AgFeed Industries, a China-based company that publicly traded in the U.S. before merging with a U.S. company in September 2010, used a variety of methods to inflate revenue from 2008 to 2011, including fake invoices for the sale of feed and the purported sale of hogs that didn't exist. The SEC alleged that AgFeed later tried to cover up its actions by

The North American Securities Administrators Association ("NASAA") announced that its members have voted to approve a streamlined multistate review protocol to ease regulatory compliance costs on small companies attempting to raise capital under the JOBS Act.

The CME Group announced that it received approval from the United Kingdom's Financial Conduct Authority ("FCA") to start a London-based derivatives exchange. The initial commodity products to be listed on the exchange include biodiesel commodity products, which have previously been cleared as swaps on CME Clearing Europe. The new exchange, CME Europe Ltd., will be a Recognized Investment Exchange and will launch on April 27, 2014.