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SPAC PIPES AND MNPI COMPLIANCE (or, acronyms run amok)

The majority of insider trading compliance questions this year, by a wide margin, have been related to SPAC PIPE offerings. …

New SEC Marketing Rule for Investment Advisers

The Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC”) has finalized significant revisions to its rules under the Investment Advisers Act governing…

Annual Letter: 2021

This is our annual letter briefly reviewing various issues that our investment adviser clients should consider over the next few…

Upcoming SEC Seminar for Investment Advisory CCOs and Other Senior Personnel

The Securities Exchange Commission (the “SEC”) has rescheduled its compliance outreach program’s national seminar for investment companies and investment advisers…

Form BE-180, 2019 Benchmark Survey of Financial Services Transactions Between U.S. Financial Services Providers and Foreign Persons

In September and October, the U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis (“BEA”) is conducting its 2019 Benchmark Survey of Financial Services…

New SEC Accredited Investor Categories and Rule 144A Amendments

The “accredited investor” definition largely has been unchanged since 1982, but on August 26, 2020, the Securities and Exchange Commission…

SEC Investment Adviser Enforcement Actions: “May” Might Be Materially Misleading & Insider Trading Policies

Two topics from recent SEC investment adviser enforcement cases, disclosure language and insider trading policies. Adviser Disclosures: What does “may”…

Countdown to Form CRS, and New OCIE Risk Alert

The due dates to prepare, file and deliver a new part of Form ADV, Form CRS (Customer Relationship Summary), are…

Navigating the Coronavirus Crisis Together

As we navigate these unprecedented times, we wanted to share our thoughts about the COVID-19 crisis, and provide some constructive…

SEC Issues Limited COVID-19 Regulatory Relief for Advisers

Updated March 26, 2020 – On Friday, March 13, 2020, the SEC announced conditional relief for the due dates of…

The Supreme Importance of Foreign Trademark Registrations

Clients often ask what the benefits are of registering a trademark. There are many benefits to registering a trademark in…

Annual Letter: 2020

This is our annual letter briefly reviewing various issues that our investment adviser clients should consider over the next few…

SEC EXAMINATIONS OF INVESTMENT ADVISERS – Winter 2020 Update

Last October I spoke at a compliance conference on the subject of SEC investment adviser examinations.  The article below is…

FINRA Amends its New Issue Rules

FINRA has updated its Rules 5130 and 5131, which govern allocations of “new issues,” effective January 1, 2020.  Broadly speaking,…

Insider Trading: The SEC’s FY 2019 Cases

Last week the SEC’s Division of Enforcement published its Annual Report for the fiscal year ended September 30, 2019 (available…

Swaps Proficiency Requirements

Earlier this year, the National Futures Association (NFA) announced that individuals registered as associated persons (APs) of NFA members that…

SEC Concept Release: Harmonization of Securities Offering Exemptions

Shartsis Friese LLP recently commented on the Securities and Exchange Commission’s Concept Release, Harmonization of Securities Offering Exemptions.  The letter…

The Cayman Islands Data Protection Law, 2017

The Cayman Islands Data Protection Law, 2017 (the “DPL”) was adopted on March 27, 2017.  Similar to the European Union’s…

Form SHL

The Department of the Treasury recently announced that certain U.S. persons must complete a survey of foreign ownership of U.S….

Help For Children (HFC)

The 18th annual Help For Children Gala event for the San Francisco Chapter of Help For Children (aka, Hedge Funds…

SEC Publishes Interpretation of Investment Advisers’ Fiduciary Duty and Adopts Rules and Interpretations for Financial Professionals and their Retail Clients

On June 5, 2019, the Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) released an interpretation to reaffirm and clarify certain aspects of…

The California Consumer Privacy Act Exemption Important to Investment Advisers

The California Consumer Privacy Act (“CCPA”) is a broad consumer privacy law that is effective as of January 1, 2020,…

Are There Any Lessons From The SEC’s Insider Trading Cases Brought Over The Last 17 Months?

The recent publication of the SEC Division of Enforcement’s 2018 Annual Report provided an opportunity to look back over the…

Recent TTAB Decision Denying Application Shows Importance of Policing Trademark And Risk Of Relying Too Heavily On Prior Registration

Securing a federal trademark registration is never a guarantee, even when the applicant has an incontestable registration for a very…

Annual Letter: 2019

This is our annual letter briefly reviewing various issues that our investment adviser clients should consider over the next few…