Citing the crucial role compliance serves for not just a company, but financial markets at a whole, Securities and Exchange Commission Chairman Mary Jo White today pledged to continue agency efforts that support and empower those professionals. That includes escalating enforcement against some firms that fail to maintain adequate the compliance programs and a greater […]
Joe Mont
Posted inFrom the Archive
ISS Opens Comment Period for 2014 Proxy Voting Policies
Institutional Shareholder Services, a leading proxy advisory firm, opened its comment period for 2014 proxy voting guidelines on Tuesday. As part of ISS’ annual policy formulation process, the comment period provides institutional investors and corporate issuers an opportunity to influence policy updates while they are still in draft form. This year’s comment period runs through […]
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SEC Makes Abrupt Announcement it Will Vote on Crowdfunding Rules
For several days, rumors have persisted that this is the week the Securities and Exchange Commission will finally vote on proposed crowdfunding rules, as mandated by the JOBS Act. Last night, the Commission confirmed that, indeed, it would do so on Wednesday. At 10 a.m., Commissioners will consider “whether to propose rules and forms related […]
Posted inInternal Controls
Busting the Barriers Between Compliance, IT, and the Business
Large, global companies have plenty of language barriers to consider. The need for better communication isn’t just for foreign tongues, though, it is also bridging the communication gaps that divide business functions that companies need to consider. The all-too-common isolation between IT, compliance, and business units can be problematic, especially when new regulations or a […]
Posted inInternal Controls
The Difficulties of Creating a Global Supplier Code of Conduct
Crafting an effective code of conduct—often more art than science—is difficult enough for a single, domestic entity. Developing them worldwide and getting not just employees but vendors and suppliers to abide by them is an even taller task. Implementing supplier codes of conduct for global companies in global markets was the topic of discussion during […]
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White Hints at Ways SEC May Overhaul Disclosure Requirements
Are the many disclosure requirements put upon public companies actually benefiting investors? That’s the important question Securities and Exchange Commission Chairman Mary Jo White posed during a speech this week before a National Association of Corporate Directors conference in Maryland. Has disclosure, she asked, reached the point of “information overload?” That debate will become even […]
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SEC Fines Knight Capital $14 Million For Trading Glitch
Having already suffered millions of dollars in losses from a trading glitch that caused chaos on Aug. 1 of last year, Knight Capital will now also have to cough up $12 million to the Securities and Exchange Commission. The SEC this week announced that the firm would pay the fine to settle charges that it […]
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Nasdaq Petitions SEC for Proxy Advisory Firm Transparency
Citing concerns that proxy advisory firms “not only increase the costs of being a public company, but also create disincentives for companies to become public in the first place,” Nasdaq OMX Group has petitioned the Securities and Exchange Commission for new disclosure and transparency demands on how those firms formulate their recommendations. The petition requests […]
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Business Groups Urge Extended Pay Ratio Comment Period
A coalition of business groups is urging the Securities and Exchange Commission to extend the comment period for a controversial pay ratio disclosure rule that was published on Sept. 18 with a 60-day comment period. Among the groups calling for at least another 60-days to weigh in, and urging the SEC to convene a roundtable […]
