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On May 23, 2019, in recognition of the one-year anniversary of the passage of The Senior Safe Act, the Securities and Exchange Commission, the North American Securities Administrators Association (NASAA), and the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) have issued a fact sheet to help raise awareness among broker-dealers, investment advisers, and transfer agents of the Act and … Read More

On May 6, 2019,  Corinthian Capital Group, LLC, Peter B. Van Raalte, and David G. Tahan settled an enforcement action. From at least April 2014 to February 2015, Corinthian misused the assets in a private equity fund, Corinthian Equity Fund II, LP (“CEF 2”) that it advised to the advantage of Corinthian and three of … Read More

On April 23, 2019, the SEC charged a formerly SEC-registered investment adviser CCM and its principal’s investment of $4 million on behalf of two funds they managed. In mid-August 2016, CCM and its founder and chief executive officer Bruce made a $4 million loan on behalf of the two funds to a Norwegian individual and … Read More

On April 19, 2019, the SEC charged Prosper Funding LLC with miscalculating and materially overstating annualized net returns to retail and other investors. According to the SEC’s order, from approximately July 2015 until May 2017, Prosper excluded certain non-performing charged off loans from its calculation of annualized net returns that it reported to investors. The order finds that, as a result, … Read More

On April 16, 2019, OCIE issued a risk alert in connection with issues OCIE identified during examinations in the past two years regarding Regulation S-P. The key takeaways from the alert are for advisers to review their written policies and procedures, including implementation of those policies and procedures, to ensure that they are in compliance … Read More

On April 9, 2019, the SEC charged a former senior lawyer at SeaWorld Entertainment Inc. with insider trading based on nonpublic information that the company’s revenue would be better than anticipated for the second quarter of 2018.  The SEC alleges that Paul B. Powers had early access to key revenue information as the company’s associate general counsel and assistant … Read More

On March 28, 2019, the SEC filed charges against the former chief operating officer (COO) of a Commission-registered investment adviser for aiding and abetting the advisory firm’s actions to overbill its clients as part of a fraudulent scheme to improperly inflate his own pay.  According to the SEC’s complaint, between 2011 and December 2018, former COO Richard T. Diver, … Read More

On March 28, 2019, the SEC revoked the registration of a Seattle area-based registered investment adviser and barred its principal from the securities industry for stealing money from a private fund the adviser managed. According to the SEC’s order, Dennis Gibb, the owner of Sweetwater Investments Inc., stole more than $3 million from Sweetwater Income Flood LP, a private … Read More

On March 15, 2019, the SEC charged Talimco LLC, a registered investment adviser, and Grant Gardner Rogers, the former chief operating officer of the firm, with manipulating the auction of a commercial real estate asset on behalf of one client for the benefit of another.   According to the SEC’s order, in or about April 2015 while selling a … Read More

On March 7, 2019, the SEC announced an enforcement action against Ascension, an SEC-registered investment adviser, and its founder, sole owner, and sole operator, Gooder. For as long as a decade, Ascension and Gooder failed to comply with Advisers Act Section 206(4) and Rule 206(4)-7 thereunder (the “Compliance Rule”) and Rule 206(4)-2 thereunder (the “Custody Rule”), and … Read More