Two broker-dealers must pay a combined $4.65 million in penalties for providing incomplete and inaccurate securities trading information to the Securities and Exchange Commission. Prudent compliance officers at other broker-dealer firms might want to take a page from their remedial efforts.
On Sept. 16, the SEC announced Stifel, Nicolaus & Co. will pay $2.7 million and BMO Capital Markets will pay $1.95 million to settle charges for providing deficient “blue sheet data” to the SEC. Broker-dealers are required to provide blue sheet data to the SEC, which the agency then uses to carry out its enforcement and regulatory obligations, including investigations of insider trading and other fraudulent activity. The firms admitted the findings in the SEC’s cease and desist orders.
