A surprise development from the inaugural batch of conflict minerals reports filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission in May is that nearly 65 companies—among them IBM, Hewlett-Packard, and Williams-Sonoma—reported that materials they used were sourced from North Korea. While the information doesn’t raise conflict minerals problems—North Korea, of course, is far from the war-torn […]
Joe Mont
Posted inData Privacy
Deadline Nears for Health Providers on Data Security Agreements
An important deadline is fast approaching for healthcare companies to ensure that the outside vendors and sub-contractors they rely on are doing enough to protect the sensitive private data of their patients. By Sept. 23, the Department of Health and Human Services expects healthcare providers to have completed “business associate agreements” with all third parties […]
Posted inUncategorized
Commerce Dept. Can’t Tell Which Smelters Are Conflict-Free
Is your company having a hard time determining whether the materials you use contain “conflict minerals” that were mined in the war-torn Congo? Well, it seems the government can’t classify smelters and refiners as conflict-free either. The U.S. Department of Commerce this week released a long-delayed list of “all known conflict mineral processing facilities worldwide,” […]
Posted inRisk Management
MetLife Likely to Appeal Proposed SIFI Designation
As expected, and long-anticipated, the Financial Stability Oversight Council has initiated a process that could lead to insurance giant MetLife being classified as a systematically Important Financial Institution, subjecting it to greater regulatory expectations and capital requirements. In a statement, following a closed session at the Treasury Department, the FSOC provided only sparse information about […]
Posted inBoards & Shareholders
CII Urges Better Disclosure of Board Self-Evaluations
Companies in the U.S lag behind their international counterparts when it comes to comes to informing shareholders of their process for director self-evaluations, the Council of Institutional Investors says in a new report that urges improved disclosures on that front. “While most major U.S. companies have a self-assessment process for the board in place, their […]
Posted inUncategorized
Bank Regulators Finalize New Liquidity Requirements
Bank regulators have given the institutions they oversee more clarity, and potentially less onerous standards, regarding the liquid assets they must preserve in anticipation of a crisis. On Wednesday, the Federal Reserve Board, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, and the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency finalized a rule that, for the first time, […]
Posted inRegulatory Enforcement
Four Years on, Plenty of Dodd-Frank Rulemaking Still Awaits
Remember the Dodd-Frank Act? Sure you do. The law that brought us say-on-pay, the Volcker Rule, the SEC Whistleblower Office, and conflict minerals reports? Well it’s now more than four years after it became law, and it’s still not fully in effect. Not by a long shot. Even the staunchest proponent of the sweeping financial […]
Posted inUncategorized
NLRB Considering New Standards for Joint-Employer Status
Seldom, if ever, has a brief press release posed an existential threat to a global business model. Just a dozen or so words, however, in a statement from the National Labor Relations Board have raised major concerns among companies that rely on franchising. Traditionally, franchisees and franchisors have been recognized as independent of each other […]
Posted inAnti-Bribery
Switzerland Targeted for Anti-Corruption Reforms
When you think of hot spots for corruption, Switzerland may not be the first country that comes to mind. Nevertheless, Transparency International is singling out the Nordic nation as part of a new campaign, “Unmask the Corrupt,” and demanding that government officials must “make it harder for the corrupt to hide behind secret companies.” Currently, […]
Posted inRisk Management
OCC Finalizes Big Bank Risk-Management Standards
The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency has published final guidelines intended to strengthen the governance and risk management practices of large financial institutions. The guidelines apply to insured national banks, insured federal savings associations, and insured federal branches of foreign banks with $50 billion or more in average total consolidated assets. They also […]
