Two New Exotic Products from the CBOE
(Oct 2012)
The CBOE has begun the offering process on two new and highly innovative volatility-related products that could have broad implications for the exchange traded products market and index investing in general.
The new S&P 500 Variance Futures are futures contracts on the realized variance of the S&P 500 index. This is in contrast with VIX futures, which trade on the impliedvolatility of the S&P 500; however, according to a CBOE press release, the ability to combine the two may have motivated...
SEC Litigation Releases: Week in Review - September 28th, 2012
(Sep 2012)
Court Enters Final Judgments by Consent Against SEC Defendants Shay Keren and Lawrence Steven Cohen
September 27, 2012, (Litigation Release No. 22498)
The SEC announced that final judgments have been entered against Shay Keren and Lawrence Steven Cohen which permanently enjoins them from violating sections of the Securities Act and Exchange Act as well as bars them from "participating in an offering of penny stock for a period of five years." The SEC filed a complaint in September 2008 against...
SEC Litigation Releases: Week in Review - August 31st, 2012
(Aug 2012)
SEC Charges Brokers for Defrauding Brazilian Public Pension Funds in Markup Scheme
August 29, 2012, (Litigation Release No. 22462)
According to the complaint (opens to PDF), Fabrizio Neves conducted a markup scheme while working at LatAm Investments LLC. The complaint alleges that from 2006 to 2009 Neves, with the assistance of Jose Luna, overcharged customers around $36 million "by using hidden markup fees on structured note transactions." Neves allegedly made millions in inflated sales...
SEC Litigation Releases: Week in Review - August 24th, 2012
(Aug 2012)
SEC Charges New York-Based Firm and Owner in Penny Stock Scheme
August 23, 2012,(Litigation Release No. 22457)
Edward Bronson and his company, E-Lionheart Associates LLC (which also conducts business under the name Fairhills Capital Inc.), have been charged by the SEC with conducting a penny stock scheme in which they allegedly reaped over $10 million in illegal profits. The alleged scheme involved buying shares at deep discounts from over 100 penny stock companies and then selling them...
SEC Litigation Releases: Week in Review - August 17th, 2012
(Aug 2012)
SEC Charges Oracle Corporation with FCPA Violations Related to Secret Side Funds in India
August 16, 2012, (Litigation Release No. 22450)
According to the complaint (opens to PDF), the Indian subsidiary of Oracle Corporation, Oracle India Private Limited, "structured transactions with India's government...in a way that enabled Oracle India's distributors to hold approximately $2.2 million of the proceeds in unauthorized side funds." Oracle India's alleged misconduct occurred from 2005 to 2007,...
New Suitability Rules Now in Effect
(Aug 2012)
FINRA was created in 2007 through a combination of the former NASD with the regulatory functions of the NYSE. Since then, FINRA has been attempting to consolidate each entity's old rules into a single manual. Although progress has been slow, recently new suitability rules took effect. This much-needed update (parts of the old rule date back to 1938) brings the suitability rule a little closer to the realities of business in a modern, full-service securities firm; but it is still a far cry...
SEC Litigation Releases: Week in Review - August 10th, 2012
(Aug 2012)
SEC Charges Participants in $5 Million Boiler Room Scheme
August 10, 2012, (Litigation Release No. 22444)
The SEC charged Edward M. Laborio, Jonathan Fraiman, Matthew K. Lazar, and seven entities controlled by Laborio for their alleged roles in a boiler scheme that ran from December 2006 to August 2009. The seven entities include Envit Capital Group, Inc., Envit Capital, LLC, Envit Capital Holdings, Inc., Envit Capital Private Wealth Management, LLC, Envit Capital Multi Strategy Mixed...
SEC Litigation Releases: Week in Review - August 3rd, 2012
(Aug 2012)
SEC Settles Litigation with Former Veritas Software Corporation Chief Financial Officer
August 2, 2012, (Litigation Release No. 22432)
On July 20, 2012, a final judgment was entered against Kenneth E. Lonchar in the case SEC v. Mark Leslie, Kenneth E. Lonchar, Paul A. Sallaberry, Michael M. Cully, and Douglas S. Newton. Lonchar, the former Chief Financial Officer of Veritas Software Corporation, had been charged with inflating Veritas' reported revenues "by approximately $20 million in...
FINRA Issues Warning on ETNs
(Jul 2012)
The Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) recently issued an Investor Alert regarding the risks of exchange-traded notes (ETNs).
ETNs are a type of unsecured debt instrument typically issued by banks and other financial institutions. Similar to its close cousin the exchange-traded fund (ETF), ETNs track the returns of a specified asset class--often an index. However, unlike ETFs, ETNs do not hold actual assets tracked by the underlying index. This means investors in ETNs can suffer...
