The CFTC entered an Order requiring an FCM to pay a $400,000 civil monetary penalty for the failure to properly handle, monitor, and report the customer funds that it maintained, and for failure to supervise its officers, employees and agents. The Firm did not comply with various reporting or notification requirements, or with requirements related to audits and financial statements. Additionally, the Order's findings include: (1) the failure to maintain a separate account to cover its obligations to U.S. customers trading futures and/or options on foreign exchanges; (2) improperly holding non

The SEC Division of Corporation Finance, Office of Mergers and Acquisitions, granted exemptive and no-action relief to iShares Enhanced U.S. Small Cap ETF, iShares Enhanced U.S. Large Cap ETF, and Tender Offer for Shares of Funds from Rule 14e-5 [Prohibiting Purchases outside of a Tender Offer] under the Exchange Act if a broker-dealer acting as a dealer-manager of a tender offer for any securities in which the Funds invest purchases such securities in the secondary market for the purpose of tendering them to purchase one or more Creation Units. View letter in full here (links externally to

SEC Commissioner Luis A. Aguilar delivered remarks at the Roundtable on Fixed Income Markets regarding ways to improve the transparency and efficiency of the fixed income markets, particularly the municipal market. Lofchie Comment: The speech strongly suggests that we can expect to see not just more rules but also more enforcement actions in the municipal markets. See: Keeping a Retail Investor Focus in Overseeing the Fixed Income Market (April 16, 2013).For a compilation of recent news items on the regulation of municipal securities, see Current Topics - Munis.

SEC Commissioner Elisse B. Walter delivered testimony on the implementation of Title II of the JOBS Act (having to do with revisions to the private placement rules). She explained why the adoption of the implementing rules could not be accomplished within the Congressionally mandated time period. See: Testimony on the Implementation of Title II of the JOBS Act. See: Title II of the JOBS Act.

SEC Commissioner Elisse B. Walter delivered a speech on the changes in authority over investment advisers as a result of Dodd-Frank, particularly on the numerous mid-sized advisers that will now be regulated by the States rather than the SEC, and the large and very complex advisers to private funds who are now subject to SEC regulation for the first time. She discussed the challenges that this presents for both the States and the SEC. Implicit in her remarks is the question as to how many resources either the states or the federal government can devote to the inspection of investment advisers