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

Displaying 81-90 out of 215 results for "Muni Arb".

Did UBS Charge its Proprietary Puerto Rico Bond Funds Excessive Markups?

(Dec 2013)

UBS Puerto Rico's closed-end funds have received much attention in recent months. While the coverage has focused on the funds' leverage and concentration in Puerto Rican municipal bonds (see for example, New York Times and Bloomberg), discovery and further research into the funds is likely to reveal other important issues -excessive markups, for instance.

Investors, including mutual funds like the UBS Puerto Rico Funds, buy municipal bonds from dealers who typically charge a markup over the...

¿Acaso UBS Cobró Márgenes Excesivos a sus Fondos de Puerto Rico?

(Dec 2013)

En los últimos meses, los fondos cerrados UBS Puerto Rico han recibido mucha atención. Aunque dicha atención se ha enfocado en el apalancamiento y concentración en bonos municipales de Puerto Rico (véase por ejemplo, el New York Times y Bloomberg), es probable que futuras investigaciones encuentren otros asuntos importante - por ejemplo, márgenes excesivos.

Los inversionistas, incluyendo fondos mutuos tales como los Fondos UBS Puerto Rico, compran bonos municipales pagando un margen sobre el...

FINRA Fines Oppenheimer over Huge Municipal Bond Markups

(Dec 2013)

FINRA announced yesterday that it has fined Oppenheimer & Co., Inc. nearly $700,000 for "charging unfair prices in municipal securities transactions and for failing to have an adequate supervisory system." FINRA found that over a 12 month period beginning in July 2008, Oppenheimer's head municipal securities trader, David Sirianni, priced bonds up to nearly 16% above the Oppenheimer's contemporaneous cost.

Oppenheimer put into place a system that would produce exception reports whenever an...

SEC Litigation Releases: Week in Review - December 2nd, 2013

(Dec 2013)

SEC Charges Weatherford International with FCPA Violations
November 26, 2013, (Litigation Release No. 22880)
According to the complaint, oilfield services company Weatherford International violated the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act by "authorizing bribes and improper travel and entertainment for foreign officials in the Middle East and Africa to win business, including kickbacks in Iraq to obtain United Nations Oil-for-Food contracts." The company allegedly earned more than "$59.3 million in...

SEC Litigation Releases: Week in Review - November 22nd, 2013

(Nov 2013)

Court Enters Final Judgment by Consent Against SEC Defendant Corey Ribotsky
November 21, 2013, (Litigation Release No. 22873)
A final judgment was entered against Corey Ribotsky who, along with The NIR Group, LLC, allegedly made "false statements to investors regarding the poor performance and trading strategy of the various AJW Funds he managed" during the financial crisis. Ribotsky also allegedly "misappropriated client assets and misled investors about the decision to form the AJW Master...

SEC Charges Municipal Issuer with Misleading Investors

(Nov 2013)

Yesterday, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) charged the Greater Wenatchee Regional Events Center Public Facilities District, a group of nine cities and counties in Washington state, with misleading investors in connection with a bond offering meant to finance the construction of an event center. According to the press release, this is "the first time that the SEC has assessed a financial penalty against a municipal issuer."

In 2008, the municipal issuer issued nearly $42 million...

SEC Litigation Releases: Week in Review - November 1st, 2013

(Nov 2013)

SEC Obtains Summary Judgment Against Defendants Charged with Defrauding Investors in Fictitious Offering
October 30, 2013, (Litigation Release No. 22861)
A summary judgment was entered againstthe Estate of Frank L. Pavlico, Brynee K. Baylor, her law firm Baylor & Jackson, P.L.L.C., and their former "client" The Milan Group, Inc. for their involvement in "a prime bank investment scheme that defrauded at least 13 investors out of more than $2 million." According to the SEC, "Pavlico and Baylor...

A Look Into the TIC Industry

(Oct 2013)

So far, we've discussed some of the concerns we have with TIC investments and shown how to use discounted cash flow analysis to value a TIC interest with our handy spreadsheet. But you might be asking, just how prevalent are these concerns across all TICs?

To answer that, we examined 194 sets of offering documents for TICs sold from 2004-2009. This totaled $2.2 billion in equity, which amounts to approximately 19% of all equity issued by TICs in that period, and included properties from 32...

SEC Litigation Releases: Week in Review - October 25th, 2013

(Oct 2013)

Jury Finds Mark Cuban Not Liable for Insider Trading
October 23, 2013, (Litigation Release No. 22855)
Last week, "a nine-person federal jury found Mark Cuban not liable for insider trading" in Mamma.com securities.

SEC Obtains Final Judgment Against New Jersey-Based Consultants to Chinese Reverse Merger Companies
October 23, 2013, (Litigation Release No. 22854)
A final judgment was entered against Huakang Zhou (a/k/a David Zhou) and Warner Technology and Investment Corporation for their alleged...

Brokerage Firm Fined for Misrepresentations Made to Former Broker

(Oct 2013)

When brokers sell unsuitable investments to their clients, it is often the case that those clients will sue the broker and the brokerage firm, a process known as 'broker-customer disputes.' What is less common is for brokers to sue the brokerage firm -- their own employer -- for encouraging them to sell risky investments that caused losses for their clients.

In a recent, closely-watched FINRA arbitration, Michael Farah of Newport Beach, California won approximately $4.3 million from his...

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