Blog

Our experts frequently write blog posts about the findings of the research we are conducting.

Displaying 21-30 out of 156 results for "JOBS Act".

Can Non-Financial Firms Issue Structured Products?

(Nov 2012)

The simple answer is yes. Structured products are for regulatory purposes corporate debt--that's why they are vulnerable to the credit risk of their issuers. In theory, any firm that can issue corporate debt could issue a structured product, and could link that structured product to any underlying asset it choose. In practice, no non-financial firm has done so in the US (to our knowledge), as there hasn't been a compelling reason for them to do so.

But according to Vita Millers at Risk.net, ...

SEC Litigation Releases: Week in Review - November 23rd, 2012

(Nov 2012)

Brian Stoker Found Not Liable
November 21, 2012, (Litigation Release No. 22541)
On July 31, 2012, the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York found Brian H. Stoker, former Citigroup Global Markets Inc. employee, "not liable for violations of the Federal securities laws related to the issuance of a $1 billion collateralized debt obligation (CDO) called Class V Funding III." The SEC did not appeal the verdict, and "the time for appeal has expired." The SEC filed its...

Do Leveraged ETFs Contribute to Share Price Volatility?

(Nov 2012)

We've talked a lot about leveraged and inverse Exchange Traded Funds (LETFs)and the problems that can arise from their rebalancing. A recent paper from a group at York University asks two simple but interesting questions: does this rebalancing affect the volatility of the underlying assets? If so, can a sophisticated trader exploit that effect to achieve excess returns?

On the first question, the authors find two main results. First, the directional trades LETF providers and counterparties...

SEC Litigation Releases: Week in Review - November 16th, 2012

(Nov 2012)

BP to Pay $525 Million Penalty to Settle SEC Charges of Securities Fraud During Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill
November 15, 2012, (Litigation Release No. 22531)
According to the complaint (opens to PDF), BP p.l.c misled investors by understating the flow rate of oil that was escaping from its Deepwater Horizon oil rig in 2010. According to the SEC, while BP reported the flow rate was about 5,000 barrels of oil a day, it had "at least five different flow rate calculations, estimates, or data...

Dual Directional Structured Products are Risk.net's "Trade of the Month"

(Nov 2012)

Last week a UK firm called Meteor launched a "Bull and Bear Growth Plan" linked to the FTSE 100 that has a payoff similar to a structured product that has garnered significant interest recently: Dual Directional Structured Products (DDSPs). Dual directional products are Risk.net's 'Trade of the Month', and they have chosen this issue as their featured product.

Generically speaking, DDSPs pay out a positive return if the underlying index or stock linked to the product changes in value...

SEC Litigation Releases: Week in Review - November 11th, 2012

(Nov 2012)

SEC Charges Purported Credit Union and Its Principal with Offering Fraud
November 8, 2012, (Litigation Release No. 22526)
The SEC filed a civil injunctive action against Stanley B. McDuffie and his entity, Jilapuhn, Inc (which has done business as Her Majesty's Credit Union) this week. According to the complaint (opens to PDF), from 2008 to 2012 McDuffie and HMCU enticed investors to purchase CDs "through the HMCU website and a branch office in the U.S. Virgin Islands," assuring investors that...

Back to the Future: Stock Prices Quoted with Fractions

(Nov 2012)

The Wall Street Journal recently reported that the SEC is considering reverting back to an old system in which stock prices were quoted using fractions. Using fractions for stock prices in the US has its roots in a Spanish colonial currency whose smallest denomination was 1/8 of a doubloon, hence prices were quoted in eights. The NYSE, founded in 1792 within the Buttonwood agreement, modeled their listing system off the Spanish system.

The largest number used for the denominator in the...

JOBS Act Double-Take

(Nov 2012)

Senator Carl Levin (D-MI) and colleagues have written two letters (here and here)to the SEC "to express [Congress's] concerns with, and offer improvements to, the Commission's Proposed Rule to implement Section 201 of the Jumpstart Our Business Startups Act (the JOBS Act)." Basically, the Senators argue that the SEC has misinterpreted the JOBS Act as allowing for widespread solicitation for private placement investments, when apparently Congress had no such intent. From the second letter:

In...

ETFs in 529 Plans

(Nov 2012)

We've talked before about the possibility that ETFs will replace mutual funds in many 401(k) retirement plans and the implications that might have for retirees. While most 401(k) plans have not yet adopted ETFs in their investment lineups, ETFs are becoming more common in another type of long-term savings plan known as a 529 Plan.

529 Plans are typically run by states and are used to save for future education expenses such as college. There are several ways to take advantage of 529 Plans. One...

SEC Litigation Releases: Week in Review - November 2nd, 2012

(Nov 2012)

Commission Files Subpoena Enforcement Action Against Adam Bielski
November 1, 2012, (Litigation Release No. 22525)
On October 24, 2012, the SEC filed an application for "an order to enforce an investigative subpoena served on Adam Bielski." In August the SEC "issued a formal order of private investigation authorizing its staff to investigate...potential compliance and security deficiencies at a Massachusetts-based investment adviser...registered with the Commission." Specifically, the staff...

156 Results

<
1
2
3
4
5
...
16
>