News & Events – Bates News

The North American Securities Administrators Association (“NASAA”) encouraged the SEC “to make significant revisions to its April 18 Regulation Best Interest and related proposals (“Reg. BI”) before adopting them in order to best serve the interests of investors.”

In NASAA’s comment letter on Reg. BI, NASAA cautioned the SEC to take it slow, be deliberate and, most importantly, to consider “significant improvements” in order to “promulgate final rules that will serve the best interest of investors as the Commission intends.” Bates Research takes a closer look at NASAA’s concerns and its recommendations to the SEC.

Bates Group welcomes Edward Longridge as the new Managing Director of Bates’ Financial Crimes practice. Based in New York City, Ed brings nearly 20 years of distinguished experience as an Anti-Money Laundering (AML) Compliance and Financial Crimes leader at major multinational financial institutions.

As the summer winds down, regulators are positioning themselves for more oversight of the financial technology sector. On July 30, the U.S. Treasury Department released a national agenda on how it intends to regulate fintech companies, encourage innovation and harmonize federal efforts with state regulators. The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency followed up the Treasury report with an announcement that it will begin to accept applications for special-purpose national bank charters for certain types of fintech companies. And on the same day as Treasury came out with its recommendations, FINRA issued a “Special Notice” seeking comment on fintech innovation in the broker-dealer industry. How are these developments going to impact the industry? Here’s a closer look.

Bates would like to introduce two of our newest experts, Olie Jolstad and Ed Laskowski.

As the deadline for comments on SEC Regulation Best Interest draws to a close, echoes from the debate on the Department of Labor (“DOL”) fiduciary rule can be heard in new concerns being raised before the Commission. In a recent speech getting a lot of attention, SEC Commissioner Hester Peirce undertook an analysis of the proposed regulation. Bates Research takes a look at that and some other notable recent reactions.

Activity around the regulation of cryptocurrency continues apace. Only a short time ago, we reported on Operation Cryptosweep, a coordinated effort by NASAA and state securities regulators to crackdown on fraudulent cryptocurrency-related investment products. Today, we review a number of newsworthy developments that may affect the regulation of a technology that has defied easy categorization and oversight. Bates Research has the roundup:

FINRA recently issued a new fraud warning to member firms, highlighted certain changing rules and procedures for arbitrators, reminded arbitrators to stay current on their disclosures and offered up year-to-date statistics on dispute resolution. Bates Research has a summary.

A recent analysis undertaken by the Wall Street Journal found that securities firms selling private placement investments employ an “unusually” high number of high risk brokers. The reporting has raised red flags for regulators who have committed themselves and their agencies to weeding out bad actors and recidivist brokers. Such scrutiny comes at the close of the comment period for FINRA’s “bad actor” rule proposals. Bates has the latest developments.

Just as the SEC was articulating a long-term agenda before Congress and pursuing a first-of-its-kind proactive investor advisory public outreach, the agency was forced to react to a new ruling by the Supreme Court declaring SEC hiring practices for Administrative Law Justices unconstitutional. In this article, we break down these recent developments and highlight a new independent analysis on elder financial exploitation published by the SEC Office of the Investor Advocate.

Connect with Bates group at the 29th Annual ACFE Global Fraud Conference. Bates Director Alex Russell, CFE, CFA, will be presenting the Data Analytics and Anti-Fraud panel “Errors, Biases and Algorithms: How to Interpret Automated Results,” while Financial Crimes Director Geoff WInkler, CFE, will moderate the Emerging Issues Panel "How to Detect and Prevent Fraud in Loyalty Programs." Fraud Expert Jacqueline Bloink, CFE, RHIA, will also be speaking on the Best Practices panel “Forensic Medical Coding and Billing for the CFE.”

June 17-22, 2018 at the Mandalay Bay Resort and Casino in Las Vegas, NV.

We are pleased to introduce Bates Group's newest experts & consultants: Jacqeuline Bloink, Ben Cooper, Craig Hurwitz, Lynn Jones, Jan Kostyun and W. Scott Simon.

Bates Group is proud to welcome Clay Grumke, our newest litigation, regulatory and internal investigations consultant and expert. Look for Clay at SIFMA's Compliance & Legal Society St. Louis Regional Seminar on June 12th, 2018.

Continuing our coverage of FINRA’s 2018 Annual Conference, regulators and firm compliance professionals participated in discussions in a session titled “Common Examination Findings and Effective Compliance Practices.” The regulators offered a look into problem areas firms continue to face and common examination deficiencies.

The discussion offered insight into FINRA’s evolving approach to regulatory and compliance management. Bates Research has the details.

Bates Group Leaders and Experts will be participating in two events coming up Thursday, May 31, 2018. Joseph Thomas, Bates Director and Elder Expert, will be speaking at SIFMA’s Investor Protection Workshop in Minneapolis, MN, while Bates Managing Director Susan Harper will moderate a New York State Bar Association panel discussion on "#MeToo: How to Navigate Sexual Harassment in the Workplace."  Appearing on the panel is Michael Putetti, Bates Group Labor & Employment Consultant and Expert.

Join Bates as we co-sponsor the NYC Bar Association’s White Collar Crime kickoff reception, Tuesday, May 8, 2018 at 6:30 PM. Meet Bates CEO Jennifer Stout and Directors Sejal Patel and Beth Finkle to learn about our Financial Crimes Practice.

Bates Group is pleased to announce that William (Bill) A. Johnstone, the immediate past Chairman of D.A. Davidson Companies, has joined the Bates Group Board of Directors.

“We are very excited that Bill has joined our Board,” said Bates Group Chairman Rob Lee. “His leadership and success at growing and managing world-class financial services companies and law firms makes him an ideal Board member for Bates.”