Duco to Expand Global Footprint Duco, the cloud-based reconciliation and data-engineering technology company, reports the completion of a $28 million investment round by Insight Venture Partners, NEX Opportunities and Eight Roads Ventures, as well as an investment by Cristóbal Conde, the former CEO of SunGard. Duco says its financial services technology allows banks, brokers, asset… Read More >>
SEC Stops ICO Feared to Be Cryptocurrency Scam
In keeping with warnings over cryptocurrency-based investments, the SEC has acted to halt an initial coin offering (ICO) that the regulator alleges is a fraud targeting retail investors that professes to be the world’s first decentralized bank, officials say. The SEC filed a complaint in federal district court in Dallas, Texas on Jan. 25, which… Read More >>
SEC Charges Six CPAs with ‘Stealing the Exam’
The SEC and the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York report consequential charges against six certified public accountants — including former staff members at the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board (PCAOB) and former partners at KPMG LLP. Those charges are based on their alleged “participation in a scheme to misappropriate and… Read More >>
The Regulators Didn’t Really Shut Down
The federal government shutdown lasted only three days but it looks as if the regulators for the securities industry were pretty much on the job whether or not the legislative geniuses of Washington, D.C. had reached an agreement. The SEC, for instance, has an operations plan, 18 pages long, that looks as if it was… Read More >>
Bitcoin Rollercoaster Becomes a Ride Most Avoid for Now
The bitcoin cryptocurrency rollercoaster is roaring ahead as regulators come to grips with instruments based upon it, some trading venues advance instruments as other venues move into limbo, and the price of the virtual currency is under constant scrutiny. The only thing more erratic than bitcoin’s rise and fall and rise was the brinksmanship around… Read More >>
Regulatory Shifts, MiFID II & IT Leaps to Rattle Markets in 2018
Regulatory change and the importance of data and analytics impacting trading venues, investors, dealers, and those that support them will continue to be main themes this year, according to a new report by Greenwich Associates, “Top Market Structure Trends to Watch in 2018 — The Year of Digital is Upon Us.” Greenwich Associates provides market… Read More >>
SEC Temporarily Suspends Trading in ‘UBI Blockchain Internet’
The SEC reports the “temporary suspension” of trading in the securities of Hong Kong-based UBI Blockchain Internet, Ltd., whose predecessor company was known as JA Energy. The suspension began on Jan. 8, 2018, and is due to end at 11:59 p.m. EST, on Jan. 22, 2018, the commission says. The temporary suspension is a result… Read More >>
South Korea May Ban Bitcoin Trading as CFTC Gives Wary Approval
While U.S. and European regulators are mulling over what to do with bitcoin, the South Korean government, which is home to the world’s third largest cryptocurrency market, is planning to crack down on crypto currency trading. At a press conference, Park Sang-ki, justice minister for South Korea, said, “There are great concerns regarding virtual currencies… Read More >>
FINRA Sanctions Citigroup Global Markets $11.5 Million
The Financial Industry Regulatory Authority reports that it has fined Citigroup Global Markets Inc. (CGMI) $5.5 million and required the firm to pay “at least” $6 million in compensation to retail customers for “displaying inaccurate research ratings for numerous equity securities during a nearly five-year period, and for related supervisory violations.” In fact, according to… Read More >>
Wells Fargo Readies New London Headquarters
Wells Fargo to Move 1,200 Into London HQ Wells Fargo & Co. recently completed its purchase of 33 King William Street (formerly known as 33 Central) in the City of London from the international real estate developer HB Reavis, bank officials say. The office development effort, announced in July 2016, marks the “first international real… Read More >>
