Financial Services

Facing a potential recession and anti-ESG headwinds may have smaller financial institutions thinking about budget cuts aimed at sustainability efforts. FTI Consulting’s Evelyn Basham and Enrique Ubarri explore what small and mid-sized banks and other financial institutions need to know about ESG in 2023 and beyond. Financial institutions of all sizes are in the midst of an ESG revolution despite...

The Russian invasion of Ukraine continues with no signs of a resolution, and along with the protracted conflict, the U.S. has continued to issue fresh sanctions against Russian interests. For firms and organizations, compliance could mean embracing perpetual KYC procedures, writes Fenergo’s Rory Doyle. Since unforeseen and devastating events last February, the West has responded by waging a war of...

A flurry of settlements with investment banks over use of unauthorized messaging apps makes one thing clear: The feds aren’t fooling around. As MirrorWeb’s Harriet Christie discusses, while recent actions have targeted the big guys, the entire finserv industry is on notice. In September 2022, the SEC and Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CTFC) reached settlements totaling around $1.8 billion with...

The SEC’s marketing rule came into effect May 4, 2021. Since then, registered investment advisers (RIAs) have had an 18-month transition period — until Nov. 4, 2022 — to fully adhere to its updated regulations. MirrorWeb’s Harriet Christie explores the rule and what steps RIA compliance teams must take by the deadline. The appeal behind the modernization of the existing...

Going by the online handle “erratic,” a former Amazon software engineer conducted an extensive hacking scheme that gave her access to the personal information of tens of millions of Capital One customers, a Seattle jury determined this spring. She’s set to be sentenced this month, and compliance expert Michael Volkov explores the regulatory consequences of her case. Paige Thompson, a...

The U.S. government places extensive regulations on investment banking and related activities, including the use of technology. And while this means operating in the space is far from a simple proposition, Finalis CEO Federico Baradello explores the need to build an infrastructure of trust. "Investment banking services are more difficult to unbundle given significant regulatory restrictions for the industry."  —...

Making the compliance case for relying on regtech to keep pace with digital transformation at banks and financial institutions. Keep up With the Digital Revolution Reimagining Compliance in Banks and FIs: The Role of Regtech What's in this whitepaper by TCS adviser Sunil Kumar:Digital transformation is reshaping virtually all industries, and banking and financial services is no different. Few functions...

Though it was created as a counterbalance to a series of early-aughts corporate accounting scandals, many of today’s most important corporate compliance themes are deeply rooted in the seminal Sarbanes-Oxley Act (SOX). Indeed, as McDermott Will & Emery partner Michael W. Peregrine explores, the law, which turned 20 years old in July, gave birth to the modern corporate responsibility movement...

Racial and gender diversity in the asset management industry lags notoriously behind broader workforce statistics, especially when it comes to individuals in investment positions. Illumen Capital’s Katie Twomey breaks down the issue and offers concrete recommendations for financial services organizations. We know that diverse-owned firms represent just 1.3% of the $69.1 trillion in assets under management within the asset management...

Rather than an exhaustive dossier of rules and regulations providing next steps for crypto firms, President Joe Biden’s March 9 crypto executive order was more akin to “a plan to make a plan.” Timelines for feedback have been established, along with the administration’s intention to protect consumers. MirrorWeb's Harriet Christie explores what it all means for consumers and the industry....

In our hot housing market, the only concern for the typical real estate professional is getting the highest dollar they can for a property. But possible new rules targeting illegal cash could remake the regulatory landscape in real estate, changing things for buyers, sellers and agents. In a recent Instagram post, Ryan Serhant, celebrity real estate agent and star of...

The SEC’s prosecution of chief compliance officers remains a fraught and controversial topic. A recent announcement of an enforced settlement with a financial advising firm and its CCO could raise even more questions about the role of CCOs and what standards the SEC uses in sanctioning them. Two Eversheds Sutherland partners give us a close read of the SEC’s order...