Pursuant to the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act (“Dodd-Frank Act”), the U.S. Government Accountability Office (“GAO”) recently released a study regarding the feasibility of forming a self-regulatory organization (“SRO”) to oversee investment advisers to private funds. Click here for a copy of the study.
Category Archives: SEC
SEC Publishes Frequently Asked Questions Regarding Switch of “Mid-Size” Investment Advisers
July 21, 2011
The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) posted a webpage with frequently asked questions regarding the switch of “mid-size” investment adviser ($25 million to $100 million of assets under management) from the SEC to state securities regulator(s).
SEC Issues Order Raising Thresholds for Investment Advisers to Charge Performance Fees
July 18, 2011
On July 12, 2011 the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) issued an order that effectively raises two of the thresholds that determine whether an investment adviser can charge a performance fee. Under section 205(a)(1) of the Investment Advisers Act of 1940 (“Investment Advisers Act”) investment advisers are generally prohibited “from entering into, extending, renewing, or performing any investment advisory contract that provides for compensation to the adviser based on a share of capital gains on, or capital appreciation of, the funds of a client (also known as “performance compensation” or “performance fees”).” Section 205(e) of the Investment Advisers Act authorizes the SEC to exempt any investment advisory contract from the performance fee prohibition if the contract is with a person the SEC determines does not need the protections of the prohibition.
Kansas Securities Commissioner Issues Guidance Regarding SEC’s New Switch Rule for Mid-Size Investment Advisers
July 07, 2011
On July 5, 2011, the Kansas Securities Commissioner issued a letter to investment advisers registered with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) that are also notice filed in Kansas regarding the SEC’s new rule switching mid-size investment advisers (with assets under management between $25 million to $100 million) from the jurisdiction of the SEC to state securities regulators.
Earlier this week, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) approved a new rule “switching” regulatory responsibility from the SEC to state securities regulators for mid-size investment advisers (between $25 million and $100 million of what will now be known as “regulatory” assets under management).
The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) posted a link to the new rule release explaining the “switch” for mid-sized investment advisers ($25 million – $100 million of assets under management) from the SEC to state securities regulators. Click here to view the details of the switch.
The United States Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) recently proposed a rule that would increase the dollar requirements that must be met before an investment adviser can charge performance based fees.
SEC May Delay “The Switch” to State Securities Regulators for Mid-Sized Investment Advisors
April 18, 2011
Under the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act (“Dodd-Frank Act”), an investment adviser who has between $25 million and $100 million in assets under management will have to withdraw its registration with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) and register with one or more state securities regulators pursuant to the applicable state laws. When the Dodd-Frank Act was enacted on July 21, 2010, the deadline for an investment adviser to switch its registration was July 21, 2011, the one year anniversary of the bill’s enactment. However, in a letter dated April 8, 2011, Robert Plaze, the associate director of the SEC’s Division of Investment Management, stated that the deadline for “the Switch” is likely to be extended until the first quarter of 2012. Click here to view the full letter.
In March, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) charged a Houston based investment adviser firm with fraudulent conduct related to offerings made to the clients of firm. The SEC alleged that the Houston based investment adviser advised clients to invest in promissory notes issued by a financial media company also owned by the owner of the investment adviser firm.
