Mark T. Uyeda Named Acting Chairman of the SEC
Washington, D.C.--(Newsfile Corp. - January 21, 2025) - The Securities and Exchange Commission today announced that President Donald J. Trump has designated Mark T. Uyeda as Acting Chairman of the agency. “I am honored to serve in this capacity after serving as a Commissioner since 2022, and a member of the staff since 2006,” Acting Chairman Uyeda said. “I have great respect for the knowledge, expertise, and experience of the agency and its people. The SEC has a vital mission—protecting...
2025-01-21 10:28 AM EST
SEC Announces Record Enforcement Actions Brought in First Quarter of Fiscal Year 2025
Washington D.C--(Newsfile Corp. - January 17, 2025) - The Securities and Exchange Commission today announced that, based on its preliminary results, it filed 200 total enforcement actions in the first quarter of fiscal year 2025, which ran from October through December 2024, including 118 standalone enforcement actions. The Division filed a total of 75 enforcement actions in October 2024 alone. The foregoing numbers represent the most actions filed in their respective periods since at least...
2025-01-17 6:03 PM EST
SEC Charges Arete Wealth Broker-Dealer and Advisory Firms, Their Chief Compliance Officer, and Several Representatives in Connection With Illegal Securities Offering
Washington D.C--(Newsfile Corp. - January 17, 2025) - The Securities and Exchange Commission today announced charges against Joey Miller, Jeff Larson, and Randy Larson, formerly dually registered personnel with Arete Wealth Management LLC, a broker-dealer, and Arete Wealth Advisors LLC, an affiliated investment adviser, for fraud, registration violations, and aiding and abetting Arete Wealth Management’s recordkeeping violations. The SEC also charged Arete Wealth Advisors and its Chief...
2025-01-17 6:01 PM EST
SEC Announces Departure of Acting Enforcement Director Sanjay Wadhwa
Washington D.C--(Newsfile Corp. - January 17, 2025) - The Securities and Exchange Commission today announced that Sanjay Wadhwa, the Acting Director of the Division of Enforcement, will depart the agency, effective January 31, 2025, after more than 21 years of service with the Commission. “I thank Sanjay for leading the Division of Enforcement and his dedication to the SEC, which began as a staff attorney more than 20 years ago,” said SEC Chair Gary Gensler. “He has led a division that has...
2025-01-17 5:59 PM EST
SEC Announces Departure of Public Affairs Head Scott Schneider
Washington, D.C.--(Newsfile Corp. - January 17, 2025) - The Securities and Exchange Commission today announced the departure of Scott Schneider, a counselor to Chair Gary Gensler and Director of the Office of Public Affairs (OPA), effective next month. Mr. Schneider has served in the role since April 19, 2021. “I want to thank Scott for his leadership of the Office of Public Affairs,” said SEC Chair Gary Gensler. “Scott is an exceptionally talented communications strategist and has been the...
2025-01-17 3:14 PM EST
SEC Policy Director Corey Klemmer to Step Down
Washington, D.C.--(Newsfile Corp. - January 17, 2025) - The Securities and Exchange Commission today announced that Corey Klemmer will step down from her role as Policy Director, a role she has held since May 2024. She joined the SEC as Corporation Finance Counsel to Chair Gary Gensler in July 2021. “I thank Corey for her service as Policy Director and before that, Policy Counsel,” said SEC Chair Gary Gensler. “She has led a policy team that has lowered costs, lowered risks, and enhanced...
2025-01-17 1:26 PM EST
SEC Announces Departure of Chief of Staff Amanda Fischer
Washington, D.C.--(Newsfile Corp. - January 17, 2025) - The Securities and Exchange Commission today announced the departure of Amanda Fischer, who has served as Chief of Staff since Jan. 1, 2023. She joined the agency as a Senior Counselor to Chair Gary Gensler in June 2021. “I want to thank Amanda for serving as SEC Chief of Staff, and before that, as Senior Counselor to the Chair,” said SEC Chair Gary Gensler. “Amanda is a remarkably talented leader, both as a manager and as a strategist....
2025-01-17 1:07 PM EST
Vanguard to Pay More Than $100 Million to Resolve Violations Related to Target Date Retirement Funds
Washington, D.C.--(Newsfile Corp. - January 17, 2025) - The Securities and Exchange Commission today announced that The Vanguard Group, Inc. will pay $106.41 million to settle charges for misleading statements related to capital gains distributions and tax consequences for retail investors who held Vanguard Investor Target Retirement Funds (Investor TRFs) in taxable accounts. The settlement amount will be distributed to harmed investors. The SEC’s order finds that, on December 11, 2020,...
2025-01-17 12:12 PM EST
SEC Charges Pennsylvania Investment Adviser Scott Mason With Misappropriating More Than $20 Million from Advisory Clients
Washington, D.C.--(Newsfile Corp. - January 17, 2025) - The Securities and Exchange Commission today charged former Pennsylvania-based investment adviser Scott J. Mason, and his companies Rubicon Wealth Management LLC and Orchard Park Real Estate Holdings LLC, with misappropriating more than $20 million from at least 13 Rubicon advisory clients. According to the SEC’s complaint, from at least 2014 to 2024, Mason made unauthorized transfers of money from Rubicon clients’ accounts to his own...
2025-01-17 12:10 PM EST
SEC Charges Paul McCabe and PMAC Consulting with Acting as Unregistered Brokers for Pre-IPO Stocks
Washington, D.C.--(Newsfile Corp. - January 17, 2025) - The Securities and Exchange Commission today announced that Paul John McCabe Jr. and his unregistered firm PMAC Consulting LLC have agreed to pay $3 million to resolve SEC charges for illegally brokering transactions involving the stock of private companies that were expected to undertake an initial public offering (IPO). According to the SEC’s order, McCabe consented to a permanent bar from broker activity by the Financial Industry...
2025-01-17 11:14 AM EST
SEC Charges GrubMarket with Overstating Revenue to Investors by More Than $500 Million
Washington, D.C.--(Newsfile Corp. - January 17, 2025) - The Securities and Exchange Commission today announced settled charges against GrubMarket Inc., a private, California-based e-commerce food distributor, for providing investors with financial information that the company should have known was unreliable and that overstated its historical revenues by approximately $550 million. According to the SEC’s Order, between November 2019 and February 2021, GrubMarket raised approximately $80...
2025-01-17 10:15 AM EST
SEC Charges LPL Financial with Anti-Money Laundering Violations
Washington, D.C.--(Newsfile Corp. - January 17, 2025) - The Securities and Exchange Commission today announced charges against broker-dealer and investment adviser LPL Financial LLC for multiple failures related to its anti-money laundering (AML) program. To resolve the SEC’s charges, LPL agreed to pay a civil penalty of $18 million and to implement improvements to its AML policies and procedures. According to the SEC order, from at least May 2019 through December 2023, LPL experienced...
2025-01-17 9:28 AM EST
SEC Charges Pair of Wells Fargo Advisory Firms and Merrill Lynch with Compliance Failures Relating to Cash Sweep Programs
Washington, D.C.--(Newsfile Corp. - January 17, 2025) - The Securities and Exchange Commission today announced settled charges against registered investment advisers Wells Fargo Clearing Services LLC and Wells Fargo Advisors Financial Network LLC (collectively Wells Fargo Advisors) and against Merrill Lynch, Pierce, Fenner & Smith Incorporated (Merrill Lynch) for failing to adopt and implement written policies and procedures reasonably designed to prevent violations of the Advisers Act and...
2025-01-17 9:26 AM EST
SEC Charges Two Sigma for Failing to Address Known Vulnerabilities in its Investment Models
Washington, D.C.--(Newsfile Corp. - January 16, 2025) - The Securities and Exchange Commission today announced settled charges against New York-based investment advisers Two Sigma Investments LP and Two Sigma Advisers LP (collectively, Two Sigma) for breaching their fiduciary duties by failing to reasonably address known vulnerabilities in their investment models and for related compliance and supervisory failures, as well as for separately violating the Commission’s whistleblower protection...
2025-01-16 4:59 PM EST
SEC Announces Departure of Director of International Affairs YJ Fischer
Washington, D.C.--(Newsfile Corp. - January 16, 2025) - The Securities and Exchange Commission today announced that YJ Fischer, the Director of the Office of International Affairs (OIA) since August 2021, will leave her role on Jan. 20, 2025. “I want to thank YJ for her leadership of the Office of International Affairs,” said SEC Chair Gary Gensler. “She has been a trusted advisor to and diplomat for this Commission in our relationships with regulators around the globe. I wish her very well...
2025-01-16 3:39 PM EST
SEC Announces Departure of General Counsel Megan Barbero
Washington, D.C.--(Newsfile Corp. - January 16, 2025) - The Securities and Exchange Commission today announced that Megan Barbero, who has served as General Counsel since February 2023, will leave the agency on Jan. 20, 2025. Ms. Barbero joined the SEC in July 2021 as Principal Deputy General Counsel. “I thank Megan for her many years of public service, most recently as the SEC’s General Counsel,” said SEC Chair Gary Gensler. “Her measured advice and judgment have been critical to the...
2025-01-16 3:22 PM EST
SEC Charges Four Individuals for Long-Running Scheme to Unlawfully Trade in Advance of Numerous Follow-On Offerings
Washington, D.C.--(Newsfile Corp. - January 15, 2025) - The Securities and Exchange Commission today filed fraud charges against John Lowe, Randy Grewal, Richard Ringel, and David Cooper arising from their longstanding fraudulent scheme to trade in advance of the public announcement of the timing or price, or both, of numerous follow-on offerings of NASDAQ-listed issuers. According to the SEC’s complaint, the defendants engaged in the following arrangement: Cooper, a registered representative...
2025-01-15 5:08 PM EST
SEC Announces Departure of Chief Economist Jessica Wachter
Washington, D.C.--(Newsfile Corp. - January 15, 2025) - The Securities and Exchange Commission today announced that Jessica A. Wachter, the Chief Economist and Director of the Division of Economic and Risk Analysis (DERA), will depart the agency on January 17. “I thank Jessica for her leadership of the Division of Economic and Risk Analysis, her judgement, and her thoughtful economic analysis,” said SEC Chair Gary Gensler. “As Chief Economist, she ably led a division that has a seat at the...
2025-01-15 10:46 AM EST
SEC Monitoring Impact of California Wildfires on Capital Markets
Washington, D.C.--(Newsfile Corp. - January 15, 2025) - The Securities and Exchange Commission is closely monitoring the impact of the California wildfires on investors and capital markets. The SEC divisions and offices that oversee companies, accountants, investment advisers, mutual funds, brokerage firms, transfer agents, and other regulated entities and investment professionals will continue to closely track developments. They will evaluate the possibility of granting relief from filing...
2025-01-15 9:48 AM EST
SEC Announces Chief Accountant Paul Munter to Retire From Federal Service This Month
Washington, D.C.--(Newsfile Corp. - January 14, 2025) - The Securities and Exchange Commission today announced that Chief Accountant Paul Munter plans to retire from federal service effective Jan. 24, 2025. Mr. Munter joined the agency in 2019, was named Acting Chief Accountant in 2021, and was appointed Chief Accountant in January 2023. “I thank Paul for his leadership of the Office of the Chief Accountant, his counsel, and his clear accounting advice,” said SEC Chair Gary Gensler. “As Chief...
2025-01-14 2:32 PM EST