SIFMA and the International Swaps and Derivatives Association, Inc. ("ISDA") have submitted comments to the CFTC on the made-available-to-trade ("MAT") submission by MarketAxess for certain credit default swaps pursuant to CEA Section 5(c) ("Common Provisions Applicable to Registered Entities") and CFTC Rule 40.6(a) ("Self-Certification of Rules"). According to the comment letter, SIFMA and ISDA support the contract-by-contract approach taken by MarketAxess with respect to the six factors set out in the submission. The agencies also support MarketAxess's demonstration of how it supports the

At the Transatlantic Corporate Governance Dialogue Conference, SEC Commissioner Daniel M. Gallagher voiced his concerns about the role of proxy advisors and the need for the SEC to take regulatory action to mitigate the potentially conflicted role of proxy advisory firms. Commissioner Gallagher described what he views as the "outsized role" of proxy advisory firms in corporate governance, and stated that it is largely a result of the "unintended consequences" of SEC action. In 2003, the SEC adopted new rules and rule amendments, which required an investment adviser that exercises voting

The National Futures Association's ("NFA") amendments to NFA Financial Requirements Section 10 ("Late Financial Transactions") and Section 13 ("Forex Dealer Daily Reports"), and NFA Compliance Rule 2-48 ("Forex Member Dealer Daily Trade Data Reports"), became effective on December 2, 2013. See: Amendments to Financial Requirements Section 10; Amendments to Financial Requirements Section 13; Amendments to Compliance Rule 2-48. See generally: NFA Rule Calendar.

The IRS and the Treasury have published Final Regulations and Proposed Regulations under Section 871(m) of the Internal Revenue Code providing for the withholding of tax on payments under equity swaps and certain other equity-linked instruments that are contingent upon, or determined by reference to, U.S.-source dividends. The Final Regulations adopt with minimal changes the rules adopted in Temporary Regulations issued in 2012. Very generally, these rules require withholding on payments that are contingent on, or determined by reference to, U.S.-source dividends that are made to a non-U.S

The SEC has charged a banking organization and its former CFO with improper accounting of commercial real estate loans in the midst of the financial crisis. According to the SEC's order, the bank experienced a "substantial increase in non-performing assets" as the real estate market crashed in 2007 and 2008, when borrowers were failing to repay mortgage loans. In order for the loans to be sold, U.S. accounting rules state, the company must classify them as "held for sale" and value them at fair value. To avoid a 132-percent pretax loss, the bank classified the loans as "held for investment,"