Kara Stein took her oath as the newest member of the Securities and Exchange Commission Friday, bringing to a close the SEC career of Elisse Walter.

The Securities and Exchange Commission on Tuesday charged UBS Securities with violating securities laws while structuring and marketing a collateralized debt obligation by failing to disclose that it retained $23.6 million in upfront cash it received in the course of acquiring collateral for the CDO.

A Federal Bureau of Investigation spokeswoman confirmed a taskforce has been formed to investigate political corruption in Orange County, but no information has been released about the impetus or targets of the investigation.

Miami told bondholders that it will "vigorously defend" itself against securities fraud charges brought by the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Peter Ghavami received a $1 million fine and an 18-month prison sentence for his role in municipal bond bid-rigging, while a judge also fined and sentenced two other former UBS bankers.

The Securities and Exchange Commission's recent enforcement action against Miami, Fla. signals the commission's seriousness about both upholding prior cease and desist orders and holding public officials accountable, market participants said.

A federal judge sentencing three former UBS bankers convicted of muni bond bid-rigging said they might receive prison terms similar to three other defendants.

The Securities and Exchange Commission filed a lawsuit Friday against Miami, Fla. and the city's former budget director, charging them with securities fraud for making faulty disclosures in connection with three 2009 bond offerings totaling $153.5 million.

The Financial Industry Regulatory Authority fined four firms $106,000 and fined and suspended an individual for municipal securities rule violations.

A Financial Industry Regulatory hearing panel has suspended former broker Anthony Grey for two years, fined him $30,000, and ordered him to disgorge $16,000 in ill-gotten gains for routing muni bond trades through his personal accounts before selling them, through his firm, to retail customers at excessive markups.

The Securities and Exchange Commission will pursue no enforcement action against Rhode Island over its pension financial disclosures, Treasurer Gina Raimondo said.

White-collar criminal defense firm Stillman & Friedman PC has joined with national law firm Ballard Spahr LLP in a partnership to help municipal bond market clients.

Municipal market participants say two Securities and Exchange Commission nominees, near toward confirmation, could influence both rulemaking and enforcement actions.

The sentencing dates of more convicted municipal bond bid-riggers have been pushed back, according to documents filed with the U.S. district Courts for the Southern District of New York and Western District of North Carolina, as prosecutors seek stiffer penalties for price-fixing of investment contracts.

Two broker dealers were fined a total of $62,500 for municipal bond fair pricing and trade reporting violations, while two individuals were fined $35,000 and suspended for violating other muni rules, the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority said Monday.

The Securities and Exchange Commission has charged the leader of a Detroit-based investment advisor for stealing nearly $3.1 million from a pension fund that his firm manages for the city's police officers and firefighters.

Testimony by former Treasurer Martha Shoffner is under review by lawmakers for possibly perjury following her indictment on 14 federal charges.

The Federal Bureau of Investigation Tuesday raided the offices of Sen. Ron Calderon, D-Montebello, according to local reports.

The Securities and Exchange Commission is hammering home the need for issuers to clean up their internal procedures in a new way, bond lawyers said Thursday, by basing a case on documents not intended for market consumption.

A former investment banker at Goldman, Sachs, & Co. has agreed to pay a $100,000 fine and be barred from the securities industry for five years for his involvement in a pay to play scheme involving a Massachusetts gubernatorial candidate.