Law and regulation

The Municipal Securities Rulemaking Board plans to amend its proposal that would require dealers to disclose their markups and markdowns in principal trades with retail customers.

The Securities and Exchange Commission will continue to go after investment bankers and issuer officials to try to debunk the notion that enforcement is just another “cost of doing business,” an SEC official said here on Friday.

Underwriters should walk away from municipal securities transactions when they discover the issuer has failed to disclose key information, dealer officials said here, citing their own experiences as examples.

A federal court judge has approved Miami's $1 million settlement with the Securities and Exchange Commission over charges the city acted fraudulently in taking steps to hide its deteriorating financial condition from bondholders.

Financial Industry Regulatory Authority examiners are probing firms’ involvement with bank loans and other alternative financings in the municipal market, a FINRA official said at an industry seminar here.

A large drop in foreclosures through the first half of this year means lower loan losses for state housing finance agencies’ bond programs, according to a report by Moody’s Investors Service.

Underwriters’ counsel should be more proactive in keeping up to date with regulators’ concerns and then communicating those to their underwriter clients, a dealer official said here.

While the Securities and Exchange Commission remains silent on whether there will be more settlements under its continuing disclosure enforcement initiative, an SEC official said any party that voluntarily submitted potential violations will be told whether the commission plans to take action against them.

Dealer groups are concerned that a proposed Municipal Securities Rulemaking Board standalone minimum denomination rule would hurt liquidity and adversely affect participants in the market.

The Municipal Securities Rulemaking Board plans to meet here Oct. 26-27 to discuss making certain pre-trade pricing data available on its EMMA website for retail investors as well as updating syndicate offering practices.

R. Seelaus & Co., Carty & Co., and Emmet & Co. have agreed to pay a total of $83,000 to settle separate charges by the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority related to unfair markups, trading below the minimum denomination, and trade reporting failures involving municipal securities.

The Municipal Securities Rulemaking Board must now have at least one municipal advisor representative board member present to constitute a quorum under a rule change it filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on Friday.

The Securities and Exchange Commission enforcement division’s heightened attention on the municipal market and application of new legal techniques to that enforcement are “here to stay,” according to the commission’s top cop, Andrew Ceresney.

The Securities and Exchange Commission voted unanimously on Thursday to finalize new open-end fund liquidity requirements that market participants said would hurt the industry by damaging the funds' appetites for munis.

The Municipal Securities Rulemaking Board announced on Wednesday that it is seeking input from market participants on where to focus its long-term strategic plan and specifically how it can improve its EMMA system.

Municipal advisors face growing concern that some activities they could pursue to help clients make private placements might land them in hot water with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Larry Kidwell, president of Brentwood, Tenn.- based Kidwell and Company, has been elected as the new president of the National Association of Municipal Advisors.

Securities and Exchange Commission examinations of municipal advisors over the past two years found fiduciary duty and fair dealing violations, said SEC officials who cautioned the number of MA exams will increase in 2017.

Dealer groups are warning that a Municipal Securities Rulemaking Board proposal to require dealers to disclose their markups and markdowns in certain transactions would be overly complex and hurt liquidity.

The Municipal Securities Rulemaking Board is proposing amendments that would outline minimum standards for municipal advisors' continuing education requirements.