MyComplianceOffice Blog

A consulting firm partner who was advising a global bank on the acquisition of a FinTech loan processing firm was charged by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission on two counts of securities fraud for illegal trading using material nonpublic information (MNPI). In a parallel action, criminal charges were also filed in the state of New York that bring a maximum sentence of twenty years in prison.

It’s that time of year again! The end of the year brings opportunity for corporate gift giving and holiday events—and with that ample risk for conflicts of interest.

Are your gifts and entertainment policies wrapped up in anticipation of the upcoming holiday season?

Special Purpose Acquisition Companies (SPACs) are a hot topic in the news right now—and an issue that’s been on the mind of SEC Chair Gary Gensler as well. In remarks at several events over the past few months he’s voiced concerns that SPACs can leave investors vulnerable and at risk.

The SPAC process leaves individuals and firms open to conduct risk and conflicts of interest along the way. And even as SPACs are in the limelight these days, it’s important to remember that there’s ample room for conduct risk in a traditional Initial Public Offering (IPO) as well.

Let’s talk about remote employees working at two jobs. Have you come across this before? A recent Wall Street Journal article covers stories of employees taking advantage of working from home to make more money and double their salary. The article says there is a rise of such practices among white-collar workers in industries ranging from tech to banking to insurance.

Last year, German police arrested a senior fund manager in Frankfurt for insider trading. The fund manager worked as a senior portfolio manager for 16 years at Frankfurt-based Union Investment, one of Germany's top asset managers, overseeing actively managed equity funds with €31bn in assets.