EU guidance seeks to clarify role of AML/CFT compliance officers
The European Banking Authority is seeking comment on new draft guidelines that set clear expectations regarding the appointment, role, tasks, and responsibilities of anti-money laundering and countering the financing of terrorism compliance officers.
Acting FinCEN head to step down; new search underway
The Treasury Department has launched a public search for a new permanent director of the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network after the acting head of the agency announced his intentions to step down.
SEC to revisit Trump-era whistleblower changes
The Securities and Exchange Commission will review two Trump-era changes to the agency’s whistleblower program, with an eye toward encouraging individuals to report wrongdoing.
SEC seeks more risk disclosures from China-based companies
The SEC will require China-based public companies listed on U.S. exchanges to make more disclosures about the financial risks posed by potential interference in their operations by the Chinese government.
Proposed bill seeks to broaden False Claims Act whistleblower protections
A bipartisan bill before Congress proposes tweaking the False Claims Act to extend anti-retaliation protections for whistleblowers who are not formally employed by the company or organization on which they blew the whistle.
What companies (and the SEC) can learn from U.K. ESG reporting guidance
The U.K. Financial Reporting Council has proposed a series of measures from which companies—as well as other regulators like the SEC—could benefit as ESG disclosures receive closer scrutiny.
FTC vote reverses longtime ‘prior approval’ stance for mergers
The Federal Trade Commission voted to rescind a 1995 policy statement that allowed certain firms taking part in a merger to skirt prior approval requirements.
New agency Europe’s latest hope to curb AML struggles
The European Commission unveiled new plans to set up an agency specifically aimed at tackling the region’s spiraling problems with money laundering.
House passes bill to restore FTC’s disgorgement authority
The Federal Trade Commission will have its power to seek disgorgement of ill-gotten gains restored, if a bill that passed the House becomes law.
The debate over AI: Regulate the tech or its use?
Recent comments by Facebook’s top executive in charge of developing AI reignite the debate over whether regulators should be more focused on reining in the technology itself or just the way it is used.
Q&A: Cigna’s approach to SEC human capital disclosure requirements
Julia Brncic, senior vice president, chief counsel and corporate secretary at Cigna, shares how the global health insurance company is complying with new human capital disclosure requirements in Regulation S-K.
New bank guidance expands on advice for handling third parties
Three federal banking regulators are seeking public input on the first comprehensive update to risk management guidance for financial institutions entering into business relationships with third parties since 2013.
10 years of U.K. Bribery Act: Compliance enough to define law’s success?
The U.K. Bribery Act marked its 10th anniversary this month, but views are mixed about how the legislation and its enforcement have fared in the decade since it came into force.
New-look FTC to test compliance with aggressive approach?
The Federal Trade Commission under new Chair Lina Khan is wasting no time in restoring its power to reshape rulemaking and enforcement, but doing so without proper time for public input is an early cause for concern.
New bill saves CFTC whistleblower program, but for how long?
A measure to save the whistleblower program at the CFTC was signed into law by President Joe Biden, providing enough funding to keep the program running through October 2022. What lies beyond the bill’s support?
Colorado third state to enact comprehensive privacy law
The Colorado Privacy Act largely mirrors its predecessors in California and Virginia but includes greater fines per violation of $20,000. The law is set to take effect July 1, 2023.
FinCEN eyes no-action letters as aid for FinTech rollouts
The Financial Crimes Enforcement Network will launch rulemaking for a no-action letter process that would give financial institutions another way to enter dialogue with the regulator about innovative and newly emerging technologies.
FinCEN puts financial institutions on notice with first AML/CFT priorities
The Financial Crimes Enforcement Network tipped its hand at changes ahead for the Bank Secrecy Act in announcing the first government-wide list of priorities for anti-money laundering and countering the financing of terrorism.
Biden signs off on repeal of OCC’s ‘true lender’ rule
President Joe Biden has signed Congress’ repeal of the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency’s “true lender” rule issued last year in the waning months of the Trump administration.
AML compliance proving tall hurdle for U.K. crypto firms
The U.K.’s financial regulator has been forced to extend a registration deadline for cryptocurrency firms by nearly nine months because so few have been able to meet even basic anti-money laundering requirements.
New rules for SCCs: What you need to know
The latest set of standard contractual clauses for companies transferring data between the European Union and third countries, such as the United States, is meant to align more closely with the GDPR and root out government snooping.
Lina Khan’s rise to FTC chair suggests aggressive antitrust enforcement
Lina Khan’s elevation to chair of the FTC on the same day her nomination was confirmed by the Senate signals the Biden administration’s intention to aggressively address antitrust issues.
SEC rulemaking list 2021: ESG, cyber-risk governance among highlights
The SEC’s spring 2021 rulemaking list is brimming with proposed regulations that would enhance ESG-related disclosures for public companies in areas like climate change, board diversity, human capital management, and cyber-security risk governance.
SEC’s Gary Gensler stumps for SOFR, shares concerns with Bloomberg rate
SEC Chair Gary Gensler expressed his support for the Fed-backed Secured Overnight Financing Rate over the Bloomberg Short-Term Bank Yield Index, which he believes has similarities to LIBOR that could be manipulated.
SEC probing GameStop, others over ‘meme stocks’ craze
Video game retailer GameStop, whose market volatility earlier this year led the so-called “meme stocks” craze, disclosed it is cooperating with an investigation launched by the Securities and Exchange Commission.
CPE Webcast: Managing policy updates in a sea of regulatory change
Updating corporate policies to correspond with an ever-changing, ever-growing list of regulations is putting pressure on already stretched corporate compliance functions. And the flood of new regulations will likely only increase going forward. Will you be able to keep up?
A decade later, Dodd-Frank remains unfinished. Will Gary Gensler’s SEC close it out?
When the Dodd-Frank Act passed in 2010, an urgency existed to enact its many provisions. A decade later, 11 of its rules remain unfinished. Will a change in leadership at the SEC get the law across the finish line?
Hardball politics at play in leadership changes at PCAOB, CFPB
No federal agency is truly immune from politics—even the ones that are supposed to be independent. That is what’s playing out at the PCAOB and CFPB as Democrats utilize similar tactics coined by their Republican counterparts.
Tech giants support G7 global minimum corporate tax agreement
Finance ministers from the G7 reached an historic international tax agreement that will impose a new global minimum corporate tax. Among those expected to be most affected are technology giants, but they say they support the move.
CPE Webcast: Riding the waves of regulatory change
With a constant influx of new and changing regulatory requirements with increased scrutiny and enforcement, organizations can quickly fall behind and be drawn into a churn of reactive activities that distract from business objectives and use up valuable resources.
Biden memo establishes fighting corruption as national security priority
A new directive released by President Biden instructs U.S. federal agencies to make combating corruption a national security interest. Compliance practitioners in the financial services industry, particularly, may feel the ripple effect
SEC pauses proxy voting rule enforcement amid review
SEC Chairman Gary Gensler announced he is directing staff to consider whether to recommend further regulatory action regarding proxy voting advice, leading the agency to pause related enforcement activity.
NYC Bar framework seeks clarity on when CCOs face SEC charges
The New York City Bar Association has proposed a framework for regulators like the SEC to use when considering charging chief compliance officers for misconduct that occurs on their watch.
EU probes of Microsoft, Amazon reignite calls for new Privacy Shield
European investigations into whether Amazon and Microsoft’s cloud-based services infringe EU privacy rules have once again shone a spotlight on how—and when—the United States and the European Union intend to come up with a new Privacy Shield.
Senate steps in to save CFTC’s whistleblower program
In an attempt to save the whistleblower program at the CFTC, the Senate approved a bill to create a separate fund to pay whistleblowers rather than having the office draw on penalties levied against wrongdoers.
GDPR’s future: Fine amounts, transparency among top points of contention
Experts believe the GDPR is largely “future-proof,” though fine decisions that vary considerably from one EU country to the next and lack of transparency remain areas of concern for the privacy law three years in.
ESG materiality, disclosures spur opposing views at SEC
The SEC has taken numerous steps indicating its intention to require public companies to disclose ESG risks, but the question of how such disclosures will work in practice is still very much unanswered.
Three years of GDPR: Many milestones, but calls for change increase
Despite its achievements, the General Data Protection Regulation’s flaws have become evident. Some are already questioning whether the regulation—and the way it is regulated—are fit for purpose and whether the law needs to be changed.
Survey: Data access further complicated by emerging privacy laws
A recent survey of 100 executives from Fortune 500 companies found more than half are struggling to balance easy access to company data with privacy and security compliance under laws like the GDPR and CCPA.
Compliance ‘well-situated’ to handle increasing ESG scrutiny
An expert panel at CW’s 2021 National Conference agreed that compliance is uniquely positioned to help companies in their ESG initiatives. The CCO and chief sustainability officer at FedEx share how this may look in practice.
German supply chain draft legislation expected to have far-reaching effect
Companies of a certain size with ties to Germany must soon establish robust due diligence procedures to prevent human rights and environmental abuses both within the course of their own business activities and within their global supply chains.
EU Whistleblowing Directive a ‘potential minefield’ for compliance
An EU directive designed to harmonize whistleblower protections could produce complexity as lawyers warn there are likely to be wide variations in the level of security each country’s national law will offer.
GameStop fallout: SEC’s Gary Gensler eyes reducing stock settlement period
New SEC Chairman Gary Gensler discussed shortening the settlement period for trades and requiring new disclosures by broker-dealers as part of testimony before Congress regarding this year’s GameStop stock surge.
Private right of action proving problematic for state privacy laws
An enforcement provision allowing customers to sue businesses that misuse their personal data is a key stumbling point for state-level data privacy legislation.
Tips for keeping pace with ever-evolving sanctions
The constantly changing sanctions landscape is much easier to navigate with a proper understanding of risk exposure. Here’s where firms can get started.
What you need to know about proposed EU rules for trustworthy AI
With various levels of defined risk and the potential for steep fines for offenders, the European Commission’s recent proposal to ensure trust in the use of artificial intelligence should receive urgent attention from industries beyond Big Tech.
GDPR one-stop shop ‘unsustainable,’ says key regulators
Irish Data Protection Commissioner Helen Dixon and European Data Protection Supervisor Wojciech Wiewiórowski are among those who believe the one-stop shop provision of the GDPR needs to be reformed for the long term.
U.K. rolls out new anti-corruption sanctions regime
The United Kingdom has in place a new global anti-corruption sanctions regime, and the government is wasting no time enforcing it, imposing its first wave of sanctions against 22 individuals.
Regulatory leadership status check: FTC nominee key to relieving backlog
With President Joe Biden’s picks to lead the Justice Department, Treasury Department, and SEC confirmed and sworn in, we check in on where other key regulatory agencies stand.
Regulators want answers from financial services on AI/ML tools
The financial services industry is at the cutting edge of the utilization of artificial intelligence and machine learning tools. Regulators have recently requested to understand how these technologies are being used—or misused.