News & Events

Bates Compliance Managing Directors Rhonda Davis and Hank Sanchez will be speaking at the Financial Market Association's 2022 Securities Compliance Virtual Seminar, May 5-6, 2022. This 2-day virtual event focuses on current compliance topics, new rules or interpretations and regulatory initiatives for financial institutions and their affiliated broker dealers.

Bates is a Proud Sponsor of the 2022 SWIFS Spring Symposium, May 3, 2022

As part of SEC Chair Gary Gensler's ambitious cybersecurity agenda, the SEC has proposed rules and and made strides to address a number of its 2022 priorities. In a January 2022 speech before the Northwestern Pritzker School of Law’s Annual Securities Regulation Institute, Chair Gensler listed four targets for revised regulatory policy: (i) SEC registrants; (ii) public companies; (iii) service providers that work with SEC registrants; and (iv) the SEC itself. To date, he has moved the ball forward on the first two of these targets, and his most recent announcements suggest more to come. In this article, we review the recent SEC rule proposals and look at the most recent developments. 

In its annual priorities report, the SEC Examinations Division focused on areas of “heightened risk to investors, registrants and the markets.” The priorities list serves as both a reflection of new and evolving threats, and as a reminder for firms to address compliance gaps or deficiencies the Division observed over the past fiscal year. In this article, Bates reviews the report in detail as we adapt our own annual summary Chart to track the SEC's evolving priorities.

In a broad new rule proposal, the Securities and Exchange Commission would require both domestic and foreign registrants to provide climate-related information in their filings and periodic reports. The deadline for comments is May 20, 2022. Read the full alert for details.

In a reminder to (i) firm management on their supervisory obligations under FINRA Rules, and (ii) Chief Compliance Officers on their potential liability within a firm’s supervisory system, FINRA distinguished between the two in a recent Notice and detailed how it would make liability determinations on an enforcement action against a CCO for a failure to reasonably supervise. Read our Alert for details on FINRA's new guidance on CCO supervisory liability and what it could mean for your firm and clients.

In a recent article assessing the regulatory horizon for cryptocurrency, Bates identified several areas of uncertainty which raised certain questions. We may now have answers to those questions in the form of an Executive Order and accompanying Fact Sheet on “ensuring responsible development of digital assets,” issued by President Biden on March 9, 2022. Here is an overview of the main points.  

The SEC Division of Examinations has just released its 2022 examination priorities report, focusing on Private Funds, ESG Investing, Standards of Conduct (including Regulation Best Interest, Fiduciary Duty, and Form CRS), Information Security and Operational Resiliency, and Emerging Technologies and Crypto-Assets. Stay tuned for our annual commentary, coming soon.

FINRA has proposed amendments to the Code of Arbitration Procedure to accelerate certain case processing deadlines for seriously ill or elderly parties. Under the proposed rule, parties to the proceeding must request the expedited deadlines.

With crypto services now reaching a mass audience, how do firms scale their compliance efforts? Bates Managing Director Brandi Reynolds recently joined ComplyAdvantage for the latest episode of their Uncover podcast series to explore this question. Hear Brandi’s insights how companies are scaling AML/CFT programs in the fast evolving crypto world.

As cryptocurrency becomes more mainstream, many people are looking to learn more, including bankers and regulators. Financial institutions are also currently trying to determine how to integrate cryptocurrency into the traditional banking and investment worlds. Read the full article from Managing Director Brandi B. Reynolds and Consulting Expert Paul Nelson to learn about five common cryptocurrency misconceptions and how Bates can help your firm.

A determined litigant is hoping to define, or redefine, a type of cryptocurrency through a lawsuit against the Internal Revenue Service. The cryptocurrency involved is Tezos, one of several cryptocurrencies that rely on “proof of stake” as the validation method for additions to a blockchain. This matter is significant, as Tezos has a unit value of about $4 and a market value of about $8 billion. Tezos is one of the currencies available for use in smart contracts—self executing contracts where the parties can verify performance without an intermediary. Learn more about how this suit may redefine Cryptocurrency for tax purposes in this article authored by Bates consulting expert Paul Nelson.

Determining if you are a money transmitter and then navigating the licensing requirements can be a daunting task. This guide is meant to ease the pain of that process with some helpful tips as well as great resources. We'll take a look at who needs a money transmitter license, what the licensing process involves, and other helpful resources.

Bates Compliance is a proud sponsor of the 2022 IAA Compliance Conference, March 3-4. 2022. Visit our booth in the exhibit hall and connect with Bates leaders Jennifer Stout, Rory O'Connor and Hank Sanchez to hear about practical insights and best practices that can help you maintain a successful compliance program. Bates Compliance Managing Director Kurt Wachholz will be speaking on the panel "Ethics for Advisers: Compliance with Fiduciary Standards - Part 2" on Friday, March 4 from 8-9 a.m.

In a press release touting twelve additional enforcement actions against firms for failing to provide complete information on, file, or deliver Form CRS to retail investors, the SEC announced settlements against six investment advisers and six broker-dealers. That message underscores the agency’s intention to hold firms accountable for making these disclosures. Read our Alert for details on the SEC's findings, the settlements, and what they could mean for your firm and clients.

On January 1, 2021, the Anti-Money Laundering Act ("AMLA") became law. The far-reaching legislation expanded the Bank Secrecy Act regulatory framework by, among other things, establishing a beneficial non-public ownership database and reporting requirements under AMLA’s Corporate Transparency Act; promoting technology and other innovation to support enforcement, particularly concerning SARs; expanding enforcement authority over art, antiquities and real estate; and increasing penalties for AML violations. The story of FinCEN’s regulatory efforts since the passage of AMLA is the story of the agency working to effectuate those mandates. In this post, Bates looks at where we are in that story with the following regulatory developments.