SEC | Solomon Exam Prep

Solomon’s Industry News: November 2014 Edition

Solomon Exam Prep is happy to release this month’s edition of “Solomon’s Industry News.” Continue reading

Solomon Exam Prep is happy to release this month’s edition of “Solomon’s Industry News.” Every month we will send out industry updates from the past month, so you can stay current and up-to-date on everything that is happening here at Solomon Exam Prep and in the industry.

Check out this month’s edition here: Solomon’s Industry News – November 2014.

To be added to our monthly mailing list, please click here.

Exam Alert: FINRA Adds Additional FOCUS Report Supplement

Effective December 31, 2014, certain firms that are required to file FOCUS reports will be required to file an additional form called the Supplemental Inventory Schedule. Continue reading

Effective December 31, 2014, certain firms that are required to file FOCUS reports will be required to file an additional form called the Supplemental Inventory Schedule. On this form, firms report their gross long and short inventory positions in specified categories of securities and commodities. The requirement does not apply to firms that have (1) a minimum dollar net capital or liquid capital requirement of less than $100,000 or (2) inventory positions consisting only of money market mutual funds.

Source: FINRA Regulatory Notice 14-43: SEC Approves Supplemental Inventory Schedule

This alert applies to the Series 26 and Series 99.

Options Trading Before Merger and Acquisition Announcements Indicate Pervasive Insider Trading

Professors at McGill University and New York University released a study investigating unusual trading activity that occurs before mergers and acquisitions announcements. Equity options in approximately 25% of target firms had abnormal trading volumes on a level that was statistically significant. Continue reading

Professors at McGill University and New York University released a study investigating unusual trading activity that occurs before mergers and acquisitions (M&A) announcements. The study looked at trading activity in equity options for the 30 day period prior to M&A announcements. Equity options in approximately 25% of target firms had abnormal trading volumes on a level that was statistically significant, showing that insider trading likely occurred. Abnormal trading was especially common in call options and out-of-the-money options.

The study’s results suggest that insider trading is pervasive. The study states that the odds of observing such unusual trading activity by chance is extremely low – “about three in a trillion.”

The study indicates that the SEC only investigates a fraction of the instances of insider trading occurring in the markets. The SEC tends to focus on cases with large target companies and cases with foreign acquiring companies. The SEC brings litigation much more frequently when the deals are actually seen through to completion – “a withdrawn or rumored deal is about 22 times less likely to be investigated.”

Sources:

Informed Options Trading prior to M&A Announcements: Insider Trading?

“Study Asserts Startling Numbers of Insider Trading Rogues”

Exam Alert: FINRA Revises Series 26 Exam

Effective June 16, 2014, FINRA will modify the outline for the Series 26 exam. The changes affect the structure of the outline, the distribution of the exam questions, and the content tested on the exam. The total number of scored and unscored questions and the score required to pass remain unchanged. Continue reading

Effective June 16, 2014, FINRA will modify the Series 26 exam. The changes affect the structure of the outline, the distribution of the exam questions, and the content tested on the exam. The total number of scored and unscored questions and the score required to pass remain unchanged.

The structure of the new outline places topics into three “functions” (job responsibilities of an investment company and variable contracts products principal). These functions are then broken down into specific tasks as subsections. This is in contrast to the old outline, which has five broad sections and had subsections based on topics and/or rules.

The question distribution for the exam will change alongside the outline format. There is less of a focus on hiring and qualification and training of representatives. There is an increased focus on supervision, sales practices, and business processing and recordkeeping rules. According to FINRA, “the questions on the revised Series 26 examination place greater emphasis on key tasks such as supervision of registered persons, sales practices and compliance.” FINRA states that this adjustment “better reflects the key tasks performed by an Investment Company and Variable Contracts Products Principal.”

New content that may be tested on the revised exam includes the USA PATRIOT Act and associated anti-money laundering rules, the Fair and Accurate Credit Transaction Act of 2003 (FACT Act) and associated anti-identity theft rules, the Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) Specially Designated National List (SDN), and Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) disclosures. Several new FINRA and SEC rules are on a wide range of topics may also be tested. These topics include disclosures during registration, deferred variable annuities, networking arrangements, proxies, business continuity plans, and holding customer mail, among others.

While some content that was listed on the old outline is not explicitly included on the new outline, test takers should still learn the material. For example, while the new outline does not specifically mention 529 plans or retirement plans, test takers will still be expected to know the rules regarding those products so that they may properly supervise individuals that sell such products.

Source: FINRA Regulatory Notice 14-18: FINRA Revises the Investment Company and Variable Contracts Products Principal (Series 26) Examination Program

This alert applies to the Series 26.

Exam Alert: Federal Agencies Implement Volcker Rule

Effective April 1, 2014, five federal agencies will implement a provision of the Dodd-Frank Act known as the Volcker rule. This rule prohibits a bank from making short-term trades in financial instruments for its own account. The rule also limits the relationships a bank can have with hedge funds and private equity funds. Continue reading

Effective April 1, 2014, five federal agencies* will implement a provision of the Dodd-Frank Act known as the Volcker rule. This rule prohibits a bank from making short-term trades in financial instruments for its own account. The rule also limits the relationships a bank can have with hedge funds and private equity funds.

The rule provides exemptions for certain activities, including underwriting, market making, hedging risk, trading in certain government securities, trading in a fiduciary capacity, and riskless principal trading. Foreign banks are exempt if the trades meet certain requirements. Insurance companies are exempt when trading for their general or separate accounts.

The rule requires banks engaging in the activities covered by the rule to put in place a compliance program. The level of detail of the compliance program depends on the size of the bank, with larger banks needing more detailed compliance programs.

*The five agencies are the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System, the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, the Securities and Exchange Commission and the Commodity Futures Trading Commission.

Source: SEC Release 2013-258: Agencies Issue Final Rules Implementing the Volcker Rule

This alert applies to the Series 6, Series 7, Series 24, Series 55, Series 62, and Series 79.