The trinity of requirements that sit at the center of financial institutions’ customer due diligence efforts—anti-money laundering, know your customer, and sanctions compliance—are growing more complex in an interconnected world plagued by financial crime, terrorism, and tax evasion. While regulators want greater efforts to ensure the transparency of customer data, banks themselves are struggling with […]
Joe Mont
Posted inBoards & Shareholders
ISS: Shareholders, Issuers Struggle With CEO Pay Limits
Shareholders want CEO pay limits that are tied to company performance and are increasingly frustrated by how the unilateral adoption of bylaw amendments by boards may diminish their rights. Those were among the findings from proxy advisor Institutional Shareholder Services’ annual global voting policy survey. The survey of both shareholders and issuers was structured around […]
Posted inUncategorized
MetLife Officially Challenges SIFI Designation
As expected, MetLife is formally contesting its designation as a non-bank Systemically Important Financial Institution by the Financial Stability Oversight Council. In an 8-K filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission, MetLife disclosed that it has notified FSOC of its request fo a written and oral evidentiary hearing to contest the proposed determination. The Council […]
Posted inUncategorized
FDA Wants Device Makers to Disclose Cyber-Risks, Controls
The Food and Drug administration this week finalized new cyber-security guidance for medical device manufacturers. The guidance, “Content of Premarket Submissions for Management of Cyber-Security in Medical Devices,” recommends that manufacturers consider cyber-security risks as part of the design and development of a medical device, and submit documentation to the FDA about controls in place […]
Posted inEthics & Culture
Football Follies: NFL Provides a Study in Ethics and Investigations
If there is one lesson that compliance officers know well, it is to learn from others’ mistakes. The mess that the NFL finds itself in following an act of domestic violence by Ray Rice of the Baltimore Ravens seems to grow worse by the day. The botched investigation of the incident by the National Football […]
Posted inUncategorized
Lawyers Decry SEC’s Expanded Use of Administrative Law Proceedings
It is often referred to by securities lawyers as the “Rocket Docket,” and usually not in a complementary way. With in-house judges, the Securities and Exchange Commission has been able to hold expedited trials to levy fines, discouragements, and disciplinary actions against defendants in what are known as administrative law proceedings. Congress authorizes federal agencies […]
Posted inRegulatory Enforcement
SEC Fines Bank of America for Regulatory Capital Overstatements
In a settlement with the Securities and Exchange Commission, Bank of America has agreed to pay a $7.65 million penalty to settle charges stemming from regulatory capital overstatements that it made due to internal accounting control deficiencies and books and records failures. Regulatory capital refers to the amount of capital that a bank must hold […]
Posted inRegulatory Enforcement
SEC Fines Software Company for Inadequate Internal Controls
The Securities and Exchange Commission has sanctioned an Arizona-based software company for having inadequate internal accounting controls that resulted in misstated revenues in public filings. JDA Software Group agreed to settle the charges by paying a $750,000 fine. An SEC investigation found that the company failed to properly recognize and report revenue from certain software […]
Posted inBoards & Shareholders
ISS: Percentage of Women Serving on Boards Hits All-Time High
The proportion of women nominees for the boards of large cap companies in the U.S. reached an all-time high in 2014, according to new research by proxy advisory service Institutional Shareholder Services. An ISS report, “Gender Diversity on Boards: a Review of Global Trends,” illustrates that board diversity is steadily increasing year-on-year. In 2014, nearly […]
Posted inRegulatory Enforcement
CFPB Orders Bank to Refund $48 Million Charged for Add-On Services
The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau is ordering U.S. Bank, chartered in Ohio, to refund more than $48 million to 420,115 customers it says were charged for add-on products, including identity protection and credit monitoring services that were either unauthorized or never received. That bank was also required to pay $9 million in penalties, according to […]
