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In case you missed it . . .
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More than 5,300 subsidiaries disappeared from the SEC filings of three major U.S. banks - Bank of America Corp., Citigroup Inc. and Wells Fargo & Co. - in the last eight years; most of the subsidiaries still exist, but loose SEC regulation and enforcement allowed them to disappear from public view (Oct 25)
AT&T's bid to buy Time Warner just the latest mega-deal; Moody's, S&P go beyond financial metrics on acquisitions (Oct 25)
Artificial intelligence programs have beaten chess masters and TV quiz show champions; next up: stock market cheats (Oct 25)
Sterling's drop shows possibility of fast asset repricing; businesses should expect more regulation due to climate change (Oct 24)
Global government debt due in decade or more swells by record; duration buildup creates vulnerability to interest-rate shock (Oct 23)
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| Fiduciary rule for retirement assets |
| DOL provides clarification |
(Oct 27)
The Department of Labor issued guidance in the form of a first 'wave' of FAQs to help financial firms comply with their fiduciary rule
requiring advisers to give retirement advice in client's best interest.
- Firms will have a transition period until Jan. 1, 2018, to roll out contracts that enable advisers to continue to receive commissions instead of fees based on total assets
- During the transition period, financial firms must provide notice to investors describing any material conflicts of interest
- Labor Department's priority is to work with financial firms on compliance rather than looking for immediate violations, which suggests "breathing room to adjust to the new rule," says Jaret Seiberg, an analyst at Cowen & Co.
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'Universal' proxy ballots
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| SEC votes 2-1 to propose rule |
(Oct 26)
Shareholders would have greater leeway in their proxy votes for director candidates under a rule proposed by the Securities and Exchange Commission.
The agency voted 2-1 to propose requiring "universal" proxy ballots, which would allow absentee shareholders to vote for a combination of management-backed and investor-nominated board candidates. Unlike shareholders who attend companies' annual meetings, proxy voters now must choose one slate of candidates without mixing.
SEC Chairman Mary Jo White first endorsed the universal ballots in June 2015, and the proposal comes despite attempts by Republicans in Congress to block agency action. Commissioner Michael Piwowar, a Republican, voted against the proposal.
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SEC relaxes small company rules
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Capital-raising, unregistered offerings caps get a boost
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(Oct 26) In an effort to boost small company capital-raising, the Securities and Exchange Commission voted unanimously to relax rules on online offerings, and increase caps for unregistered offerings.
One change will allow some small capital-raisers using one type of offering to solicit out-of-state money. Another will raise caps from $1 million to $5 million on other types of unregistered offerings.
The rules are designed to make it easier for smaller issuers to raise capital online.
The initiative "eliminates an existing restriction on offers that has been outmoded by the tremendous expansion of internet communications," agency Chair Mary Jo White said.
The rule complements 2015's crowdfunding rule under 2012 Jumpstart Our Business Startups Act.
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Hand-curated, chosen with love
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Insider-Trading Stories in 'Toon Town
They're not bad, just drawn that way (video above)
Secondary corporate bond market liquidity: What CFA Institute members think (survey)
In the Americas and Europe, the Middle East and Africa, they reported decreases in liquidity, decreases in the number of dealers making markets, increases in the time to execute orders and more unfilled orders. The Asia-Pacific region reported that liquidity is fine.
The case of the vanishing state economic report
Kansas ends bad economic news by not reporting it
How successful people work less-and get more done
Productivity per hour declines sharply when the workweek exceeds 50 hours, and productivity drops off so much after 55 hours that there's no point in working any more
Charts that go bump in the night
These are the charts that scare Wall Street
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