WASHINGTON, D.C.—Benjamin Schiffrin, Director of Securities Policy, issued the following statement regarding the SEC’s decision to rescind Staff Accounting Bulletin (SAB) 121: “The SEC’s decision to rescind SAB 121 endangers investors and the financial system as a whole. SAB 121 provided that companies holding crypto assets for customers face unique risks and should therefore reflect […]
WASHINGTON, D.C.—Director of Securities Policy Benjamin Schiffrin issued the following statement on the filing of Better Markets’ Comment Letter to the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) in connection with an application filed by 24X National Exchange LLC (24X) to operate a trading platform 23 hours per day, seven days per week: “The approval of 24X’s […]
WASHINGTON, D.C.—Director of Securities Policy Benjamin Schiffrin issued the following statement on the filing of Better Markets’ Comment Letter to the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) in response to proposed rule changes filed by national securities exchanges to list and trade options on spot bitcoin exchange-traded products (“ETPs”): “In January 2024, the SEC approved the […]
WASHINGTON, D.C. — Stephen Hall, Legal Director and Securities Specialist, issued the following statement on tomorrow’s hearing titled “Small Print, Big Impact: Examining the Effects of Forced Arbitration,” being convened by the Senate Judiciary Committee: “We commend the Committee for continuing its work to shine a light on the harmful impact of forced arbitration clauses. […]
WASHINGTON, D.C.—Brady Williams, Better Markets Legal Counsel, issued the following statement after 17 investor consumer advocacy organizations submitted a letter, organized by Public Citizen and Better Markets, urging the SEC to issue a rule banning the use of mandatory pre-dispute arbitration clauses in broker-dealer and investment adviser contracts. “Our letter calls upon the SEC to […]
WASHINGTON, D.C.—Legal Director and Securities Specialist Stephen Hall issued the following statement on the filing of Better Markets’ Comment Letter to the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) in response to the agency’s proposed rule to enhance protections for client assets held or managed by registered investment advisers: “Investors simply must have confidence that when they […]
On December 8, Better Markets’ Legal Counsel Scott Farnin took part in an SEC Investor Advisory Committee panel discussion of single stock ETFs. The panel focused on the recent rise of single-stock ETFs, which give investors leveraged returns to the daily returns of specific stocks. Scott explained that single-stock ETFs represent the unnecessary introduction of […]
On December 8, Stephen Hall, Legal Director for Better Markets, participated in the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) Investor Advisory Committee meeting. Hall took part in a “Panel Discussion on Account Statement Disclosure: Do client statements adequately serve investors?”, which focused on analyzing the content and format of information that is conveyed to customers through […]
The following piece ran in Law 360 on December 7, 2022 by Stephen Hall and Houston Shaner On Nov. 15, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission’s Division of Enforcement released its summary of the enforcement actions it brought in fiscal year 2022.[1] It offers good news and bad news. The good news first: The case […]
WASHINGTON, D.C.—Stephen Hall, Legal Director and Securities Specialist, issued the following statement in response to the SEC’s enforcement statistics for fiscal year 2022, released today: “The numbers sound impressive. For example, the SEC announced that it brought 9% more enforcement actions in FY 2022 compared to the prior fiscal year, with a 6.5% bump up […]
This article was published in the NAPFA Advisor Magazine. The U.S. economy and financial markets have entered a period of heightened uncertainty, posing fresh challenges for investors. Inflation is up sharply, a possible recession looms, and the securities markets are exhibiting significant volatility while venturing into bear territory. Commodity prices are also experiencing huge price […]
WASHINGTON, D.C.— Stephen Hall, Legal Director and Securities Specialist at Better Markets, issued the following statement in response to the Securities and Exchange Commission’s (SEC) adoption of a final whistleblower rule reversing two flawed provisions written under the prior administration: “The SEC’s whistleblower program has been an extraordinarily effective enforcement tool in fighting against fraud […]
WASHINGTON, D.C.— Stephen Hall, Legal Director and Securities Specialist at Better Markets, issued the following statement in response to the Securities and Exchange Commission’s (SEC) adoption of a final rule requiring public companies to disclose information on the relationship between executive compensation actually paid and companies’ financial performance: “Executive compensation schemes can incentivize the worst […]
WASHINGTON, D.C.— Stephen Hall, Legal Director and Securities Specialist at Better Markets, issued the following statement after Better Markets filed two comment letters with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) regarding its proposals to require investment companies, investment advisers, and other entities to disclose to investors additional information regarding their environmental, social, and governance (“ESG”) […]
Washington, D.C. – Stephen Hall, Legal Director and Securities Specialist for Better Markets, issued the following statement on the decision from the D.C. Circuit in the case of Citadel Securities LLC v. Securities and Exchange Commission: “The Court has handed the SEC a complete and well-deserved win in a case that will make our trading […]
WASHINGTON, D.C.— Dennis M. Kelleher, President and CEO, issued the following statement on the release of an article titled “Democratizing Equity Markets With And Without Exploitation: Robinhood, Gamestop, Hedge Funds, Gamification, High-Frequency Trading, And More,” authored by Better Markets staff in the Western New England Law Review: “Wall Street has been too exclusive, expensive, opaque, […]
Exposing Pandemic Profiteering at American’s Central Bank, Leadership Failures & Cover Up As hundreds of thousands of Americans were dying and tens of millions were being thrown out of work due to a catastrophic pandemic that gripped the country with fear, some of the most senior officials at the U.S. central bank – the Federal […]
WASHINGTON, D.C.— Dennis M. Kelleher, President and CEO, issued the following statement upon the departure of Commissioner Allison Herren Lee from the Securities and Exchange Commission: “While we welcome incoming Commissioner Jaime Lizarraga to the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) today, we would be remiss not to recognize the many contributions of outgoing Commissioner Allison […]
WASHINGTON, D.C.—Legal Director and Securities Specialist Stephen Hall issued the following statement on the filing of Better Markets’ Comment Letter to the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) in response to the agency’s proposed rule on Standards for Recovery of Erroneously Awarded Compensation: “This is among the last reforms required under the Dodd-Frank Act aimed at […]
WASHINGTON, D.C.—Following Better Markets’ recommendations in its December 2021 comment letter, today the SEC rescinded provisions of a 2020 rule that stifled the availability of independent and timely advice for shareholders exercising their proxy voting rights. Legal Director and Securities Specialist Stephen Hall issued the following statement on the rule: “The SEC’s rule is a […]
WASHINGTON, D.C.— Dennis M. Kelleher, President and CEO, issued the following statement in response to the Securities and Exchange Commission’s (SEC) rejection of a crypto exchange traded fund (ETF): “The SEC’s overriding mission is to protect investors and that could not be more important than now after more than $2 trillion have been lost in […]
WASHINGTON, D.C.—Legal Director and Securities Specialist Stephen Hall issued the following statement on the filing of Better Markets’ Comment Letter to the Securities and Exchange Commission in response to the agency’s proposal to enhance the disclosure of the climate-related risks facing companies: “No company will be able to escape the financial consequences of climate change, […]
WASHINGTON, D.C.— Dennis M. Kelleher, President and CEO, issued the following statement upon the Senate’s confirmation of President Biden’s nominees Jamie Lizárraga and Mark Uyeda to serve as commissioners at the Securities and Exchange Commission: “We applaud the Senate for confirming President Biden’s nominees Jamie Lizárraga and Mark Uyeda to serve as commissioners at the […]
WASHINGTON, D.C.—Legal Director and Securities Specialist Stephen Hall issued the following statement on the filing of Better Markets’ Comment Letter to the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) in response to the agency’s proposed rule that enhances investor protections and brings “Special Purpose Acquisition Companies” (“SPACs”) into closer regulatory alignment with traditional IPOs: “90 percent of […]
WASHINGTON, D.C.—Legal Director and Securities Specialist Stephen Hall issued the following statement on the filing of Better Markets’ Comment Letter to the Securities and Exchange Commission in response to the agency’s proposed rules on security-based swap execution facilities: “These rules have taken years to develop but they will finally establish a critical set of reforms we need […]
WASHINGTON, D.C.— Better Markets’ Legal Director and Securities Specialist Steve Hall and Christine Lazaro, Professor of Clinical Legal Education and Director of the Securities Arbitration Clinic at St. John’s University School of Law, highlight the urgent need for the U.S. Department of Labor to strengthen protections for retirement investors and require financial advisors always to act […]
WASHINGTON, D.C.—Legal Director and Securities Specialist Stephen Hall issued the following statement on the filing of Better Markets’ Comment Letter to the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) in response to the agency’s proposed rule to modernize and expand the definition of those firms that are “dealers” or “government securities dealers” subject to SEC regulation: “This […]
WASHINGTON, D.C.—Legal Director and Securities Specialist Stephen Hall issued the following statement on the filing of Better Markets’ Comment Letter to the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) in response to the agency’s proposed rule that would establish comprehensive cybersecurity disclosure requirements for publicly traded companies: “This proposal represents a major step forward in making sure […]
WASHINGTON, D.C.—Legal Director and Securities Specialist Stephen Hall issued the following statement on the filing of Better Markets’ Comment Letter to the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) in response to the agency’s proposal to bring more transparency to short selling activity: “To protect investors and markets, short selling transparency must be increased. Disclosures must be […]
WASHINGTON, D.C.—Legal Director and Securities Specialist Stephen Hall issued the following statement on the filing of Better Markets’ Comment Letter to the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) on the agency’s proposed rule that would require enhanced disclosures by private fund advisers and prohibit adviser practices that are especially harmful to fund investors: “The private funds […]
WASHINGTON, D.C.—Legal Director and Securities Specialist Stephen Hall issued the following statement on the filing of Better Markets’ Comment Letter to the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) on the agency’s proposal to revise its rules governing reporting by those who acquire large ownership interests in public companies. “The SEC has rightly decided that it’s time […]
WASHINGTON, D.C.—Legal Director and Securities Specialist Stephen Hall issued the following statement on the filing of Better Markets’ Comment Letter to the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) in response to the agency’s proposal on additional money market fund (MMF) reforms: “The stable NAV, which is still maintained by many MMFs, is a fiction bordering on […]
WASHINGTON, D.C.—Legal Director and Securities Specialist Stephen Hall issued the following statement on the filing of Better Markets’ Comment Letter to the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) in response to the agency’s request for information on junk fees: “Every year, bank and non-bank financial institutions charge tens of billions of dollars in fees to consumers. […]
WASHINGTON, D.C.—Legal Director and Securities Specialist Stephen Hall issued the following statement on the filing of Better Markets’ Comment Letter to the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) in response to the agency’s proposal to shorten the securities settlement cycle: “The complicated mechanics of the securities markets are largely hidden from public view, but they have […]
WASHINGTON, D.C.— Today, Legal Director and Securities Specialist Stephen Hall issued the following statement on the release of Better Markets’ newest report: The SEC Must Stop Bleeding Public Markets Dry: “Over the last several decades, the SEC’s steadily expanding exemptions from the registration requirements in the U.S. securities laws have shifted capital-raising activities between two […]
Date: Wednesday, April 6, 2022 To: Interested Parties Subject: Information on Goldman Sachs’ Role in the Egregious 1MDB Global Crime Spree as the Trial of Former Goldman Sachs’ Partner Ng Goes to the Jury Event: Justice Dpt. prosecution of Goldman Sachs’ former partner goes to jury with a verdict expected this week. From: Evelyn Swan, […]
WASHINGTON, D.C.—Legal Director and Securities Specialist Stephen Hall issued the following statement on the filing of Better Markets’ Comment Letter to the Securities and Exchange Commission in response to the agency’s proposal to rein in abusive insider stock trading: “In light of the well-documented history of abuses involving insider trading by executives acting under the […]
WASHINGTON, D.C.—Legal Director and Securities Specialist Stephen Hall issued the following statement on the filing of Better Markets’ comment letter to the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) in response to the agency’s proposal on share repurchases, also known as stock buybacks: “Stock buybacks have grown substantially in recent years and with that trend has come increasing public […]
WASHINGTON, D.C.—Legal Director and Securities Specialist Stephen Hall issued the following statement regarding the Securities and Exchange Commission’s (SEC) proposed rule regarding special purpose acquisition companies (SPACs): “We welcome today’s proposed rule on SPACs as an important step in addressing the serious investor protection concerns raised by these vehicles. The past few years have seen […]
A mildly amusing truism in football is that, often, “[n]o player is more popular on a team than the backup quarterback.” In other words, football fans (particularly of lousy teams) are almost constantly clamoring for something different, convinced that a new approach, as represented by a new quarterback, will solve whatever problems are plaguing the […]
WASHINGTON, D.C.—Legal Director and Securities Specialist Stephen Hall issued the following statement on the filing of Better Markets’ comment letter to the Securities and Exchange Commission in response to the agency’s proposed anti-fraud and anti-manipulation rules for security-based swaps: “Fraud, manipulation, excessive risk-taking, and a lack of meaningful transparency surrounding security-based swaps were among the most important […]
WASHINGTON, D.C.—Legal Director and Securities Specialist Stephen Hall issued the following statement on the filing of Better Markets’ comment letter to the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) in response to the agency’s proposed amendments to reporting requirements for private funds: “The proposed rule will improve the quantity, quality, and timing of information the SEC receives regarding […]
WASHINGTON, D.C.— Stephen W. Hall, Legal Director and Securities Specialist at Better Markets, issued the following statement regarding the Securities and Exchange Commission’s (SEC) proposed rule regarding disclosure of climate-related risks, released today: “We welcome today’s proposed rule from the SEC. It will go a long way toward ensuring that all investors have more robust, […]
WASHINGTON, D.C.—Legal Director and Securities Specialist Stephen Hall issued the following statement on the filing of Better Markets’ Comment Letter to the Securities and Exchange Commission in response to the agency’s proposal that would require companies to disclose how executive compensation relates to the company’s financial performance: “This rule was mandated under the Dodd-Frank Act, and its core […]
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Thursday, February 3, 2022 Contact: Evelyn Swan at 202-618-6433 or [email protected] WASHINGTON, D.C.—Stephen W. Hall, Legal Director and Securities Specialist for Better Markets, released the following statement after Better Markets and the Consumer Federation of America filed an amicus brief urging the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit to reverse […]
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Wednesday, January 26, 2022 Contact: Evelyn Swan at 202-618-6433 or [email protected] WASHINGTON, D.C.—Stephen Hall, Better Markets Legal Director and Securities Specialist, released the following statement on the SEC’s proposed amendments to reporting requirements for advisers to hedge funds, liquidity funds, and private equity funds: “We applaud the Securities and Exchange Commission for […]
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Thursday, January 20, 2022 Contact: Doug Walker at 202-618-6430 or [email protected] WASHINGTON, D.C.—Stephen Hall, Legal Director and Securities Specialist, issued the following statement on release of a new report on the SEC Whistleblower Program: “Established by the 2010 Dodd-Frank Act, the SEC’s whistleblower program has amassed an impressive, decade-long record as an […]
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Tuesday, January 11, 2022 Contact: Doug Walker at 202-618-6430 or [email protected] WASHINGTON, D.C.—Legal Director and Securities Specialist Stephen Hall issued the following statement on the filing of Better Markets’ Comment Letter to the Securities and Exchange Commission in response to the agency’s proposal to require the reporting and public dissemination of key data about […]
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Thursday, January 6, 2022 Contact: Doug Walker at 202-618-6430 or [email protected] WASHINGTON, D.C.— Dennis Kelleher, Co-founder, President, and Chief Executive Officer of Better Markets, issued the following statement in connection with the New York Times story today about Federal Reserve’s Vice Chair Clarida’s amended trading disclosure: “The New York Times’ explosive story […]
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Tuesday, December 28, 2021 Contact: Doug Walker at 202-618-6430 or [email protected] WASHINGTON, D.C.—Legal Director and Securities Specialist Stephen Hall issued the following statement on the filing of Better Markets’ comment letter to the Securities and Exchange Commission regarding its proposal to rescind Trump-era requirements that unnecessarily burden proxy advisory firms: “We support […]
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