The UK Chancellor of the Exchequer announced today that Mark Carney, current governor of the Bank of Canada and Chairman of the Financial Stability Board, will succeed Sir Mervyn King as governor of the Bank of England on July 1, 2013. Carney will serve a fixed term of eight years and will hold new regulatory powers over banks as part of the transfer of responsibilities for U.K. financial services regulation set to become effective in January 2013.

The MSRB announced that it has amended its proposal to collect comprehensive data from dealers on 529 college savings plans. The proposal would require plan underwriters to provide the MSRB with data semiannually and to report performance data annually. Other changes to the proposal relate to the details to be submitted on 529 plan investments and the effective date of reporting requirements. The MSRB is seeking public comment on the revised proposal. Comments, which can be submitted here, are due December 21, 2012. See: MSRB Press Release and Regulatory Notice.

The FDIC, OCC, Federal Reserve, and the Conference of State Bank Supervisors have released a statement that explains the requirements of Section 612 of the Dodd-Frank Act and the processes through which banks or savings associations apply to convert their charters. Section 612 imposes restrictions on conversions of certain national banks or federal savings associations to state-chartered institutions and on conversions of certain state-chartered banks or savings associations to national banks or federal savings associations. The statement clarifies supervisory expectations for regulatory

New rules and rule proposals from NASDAQ, NSX, NYSE, and NYSE Arca. Click on the links to view the SEC's notices of each rule change and proposal. NASDAQ: Notice of Designation of Longer Period for Commission Action on Proposed Rule Change with Respect to INAV Pegged Orders for ETFs NSX: Effective Immediately - Rule Change to Clarify the Operation of the Exchange's Depth-of-Book Feed NYSE: Effective Immediately - Rule Change Amending Its Price List to Specify Pricing That Is Currently Applicable to Certain Executions on the Exchange, but That Is Not Currently Included in the Price List (See

FINRA filed with the SEC a proposed rule change to waive certain Trade Reporting and Compliance Engine ("TRACE") late trade reporting fees specified in FINRA Rule 7730(b)(3) due to disruptions in normal business operations as a result of Hurricane Sandy. Click here to view text of proposed rule change (links externally to FINRA website).