Employers may be getting a temporary reprieve from the “pay-or-play” employer mandate of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, but that doesn’t mean other healthcare reform requirements won’t be hitting them soon. On July 2, the Treasury Department and White House announced that some employer reporting requirements and the employer shared responsibility penalty of the healthcare reform law have been pushed forward to 2015. Many other aspects of the […]
Joe Mont
Posted inData Privacy
Private Securities Offerings Just Got a Lot Less Private
It will soon be a lot easier for investment funds and companies to raise money from the general public through private securities offerings. But hold on, there’s a catch. On July 10, the Securities and Exchange Commission adopted a long-awaited rule that implements a JOBS Act requirement lifting the ban on general solicitation and advertising for private securities offerings. But the SEC attached plenty […]
Posted inFrom the Archive
Treasury Delays Key FATCA Deadline Amid Outreach to 80 Countries
Due to “overwhelming interest abroad,” the Treasury Department has announced a six-month extension to the Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act withholding requirement?. The announcement, made jointly with the Internal Revenue Service on Friday, said an extension, to July 1, 2014, will provide foreign financial institutions (FFIs) the time necessary to comply. Enacted by Congress in […]
Posted inFrom the Archive
CFTC Approves Slower, Deferential Rollout for Global Swaps Rules
Following a flurry of last-minute activity, the Commodity Futures Trading Commission approved new guidelines that allow for greater deference to international swap regulations. On Friday, by a 3-1 vote, the Commission approved Cross-Border Final Guidance and a Cross-Border Phase-In Exemptive Order. The vote, for now, settles an ongoing dispute between U.S. regulators and their foreign […]
Posted inFrom the Archive
Bipartisan Team of Senators Pitches a New Glass-Steagall Act
A bipartisan team of Senators is looking to resurrect the Glass-Steagall Act On Thursday Senators Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.), John McCain (R-Ariz.), Maria Cantwell (D-Wash.), and Angus King (I-Maine) introduced the 21st Century Glass-Steagall Act, a modernized version of the Banking Act of 1933. The legislation would separate traditional banks, with savings and checking accounts that […]
Posted inFrom the Archive
PwC Finds Many Mired in Early Steps of Conflict Minerals Compliance
With reporting demands for the Securities and Exchange Commission’s “conflict minerals” rule coming due on May 31, 2014, a large number of public companies are still scrambling to determine their next steps for complying with the new transparency demands on their supply chain. That’s according to a new PwC survey that looked at how companies […]
Posted inFrom the Archive
European Union and CFTC Reach Agreement on Derivative Regulations
Commodity Futures Trading Commission Chairman Gary Gensler and European Commissioner Michel Barnier have announced a compromise on the contentious issue of regulating cross-border derivatives. “Our discussions have been long and sometimes difficult,” Barnier said, adding that he was nevertheless pleased by what were ultimately “continuous and collaborative talks.” The agreement, released on Thursday, stems from […]
Posted inFrom the Archive
AIG and GE Capital Elevated to ‘Too-Big-to-Fail’ Status by FSOC
The Financial Stability Oversight Council has designated American International Group and General Electric Capital as Systemically Important Financial Institutions (SIFIs). In accordance with the Dodd-Frank Act, the Council is authorized to determine that a nonbank financial company’s material financial distress—or the nature, scope, size, scale, concentration, interconnectedness, or mix of its activities—could pose a threat […]
Posted inFrom the Archive
SEC Votes to Allow Advertising of Private Securities Offerings
The Securities and Exchange Commission has voted (4-1, with Commissioner Luis Aguilar objecting) to allow the advertising and solicitation of private securities offerings by hedge funds, venture capitalists, and start-ups. The Commission approved rule changes on Wednesday morning that facilitate the easing of those pre-existing restrictions, in accordance with a mandate of the Jumpstart Our […]
Posted inFrom the Archive
Regulators Want Large Banks to Double Leverage Ratio
Banking regulators on Tuesday proposed new rules that would require some large U.S. banks to double their leverage ratio, the calculation of their equity holdings compared to total assets. The requirement is intended to force banks to rely more on equity capital (such as profits and stock proceeds) and less on debt and riskier assets. […]
