This is a photo of the National Register of Historic Places listing with reference number 7000063
Saturday, April 5, 2014
Thursday, April 3, 2014
CFTC ACTING CHAIRMAN WETJEN STATEMENT ON END-USERS AND DODD-FRANK
FROM: COMMODITY FUTURES TRADING COMMISSION
Statement of Acting Chairman Mark Wetjen at Roundtable on Dodd-Frank End-User Issues
April 3, 2014
Washington, DC—Commodity Futures Trading Commission Acting Chairman Mark Wetjen made the following statement at the public roundtable on end-users and the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act (Dodd-Frank).
“I am pleased the staff has convened today’s roundtable focusing on end-user issues and the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act. Congress was crystal clear that commercial end-users, which make up the overwhelming majority of companies in America, did not cause the crisis. Further, Congress was equally clear that in putting in place the significant derivatives reforms contained in Dodd-Frank, the derivative markets needed to remain accessible to end-users who rely on these markets for hedging and price-discovery needs.
“Looking ahead, the Commission must continue to remain open to revisiting certain rules and making adjustments as necessary. For example, the de minimis exception in the swap dealer definition for Special Entities – defined in the Dodd Frank Act to include federal, state, and municipal entities – was making it difficult for government-owned electric utilities to hedge key operational risks. In response, Commission staff recently issued temporary no-action relief that allows counterparties to exclude utility operations-related swaps from the 25 million dollar threshold.”
“Today, I am pleased to announce that I am putting into circulation a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) that would amend the de minimis exception to address this issue. Once the Commission issues the proposal, I look forward to receiving comment from the public and interested parties on this issue. I would like to thank the hardworking staff of the CFTC for convening this roundtable. I am looking forward to hearing the thoughts of everyone participating in the roundtable.”
Statement of Acting Chairman Mark Wetjen at Roundtable on Dodd-Frank End-User Issues
April 3, 2014
Washington, DC—Commodity Futures Trading Commission Acting Chairman Mark Wetjen made the following statement at the public roundtable on end-users and the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act (Dodd-Frank).
“I am pleased the staff has convened today’s roundtable focusing on end-user issues and the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act. Congress was crystal clear that commercial end-users, which make up the overwhelming majority of companies in America, did not cause the crisis. Further, Congress was equally clear that in putting in place the significant derivatives reforms contained in Dodd-Frank, the derivative markets needed to remain accessible to end-users who rely on these markets for hedging and price-discovery needs.
“Looking ahead, the Commission must continue to remain open to revisiting certain rules and making adjustments as necessary. For example, the de minimis exception in the swap dealer definition for Special Entities – defined in the Dodd Frank Act to include federal, state, and municipal entities – was making it difficult for government-owned electric utilities to hedge key operational risks. In response, Commission staff recently issued temporary no-action relief that allows counterparties to exclude utility operations-related swaps from the 25 million dollar threshold.”
“Today, I am pleased to announce that I am putting into circulation a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) that would amend the de minimis exception to address this issue. Once the Commission issues the proposal, I look forward to receiving comment from the public and interested parties on this issue. I would like to thank the hardworking staff of the CFTC for convening this roundtable. I am looking forward to hearing the thoughts of everyone participating in the roundtable.”
SUMMARY JUDGEMENT GRANTED IN INSIDER TRADING CASE
FROM: SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION
SEC Granted Summary Judgment in Insider Trading Case Against John Kinnucan and His Expert Consulting Firm
The Securities and Exchange Commission announced that earlier today Judge Alison J. Nathan of the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York entered final judgments in the SEC's civil injunctive action against John Kinnucan and his Portland, Oregon-based expert consulting firm Broadband Research Corporation. The Court imposed judgments of $6,533,492.88 against each defendant on a joint and several basis, including disgorgement of $1,583,445.96 together with prejudgment interest of $199,790.14 and a civil penalty of $4,750,337.88. The defendants were also permanently enjoined from future violations of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 and Rule 10b-5.
The charges against Kinnucan and Broadband stemmed from the SEC's ongoing investigation of insider trading involving expert networks. In a parallel criminal case, Kinnucan previously pled guilty to two counts of securities fraud and one count of conspiracy to commit securities fraud. Kinnucan is currently incarcerated in California.
In its complaint, filed on February 17, 2012, the SEC alleged that Kinnucan and Broadband claimed to be in the business of providing clients with legitimate research about publicly-traded technology companies, but instead routinely tipped clients with material nonpublic information that Kinnucan obtained from prohibited sources inside the companies. Clients then traded on the inside information. Portfolio managers and analysts at prominent hedge funds and investment advisers paid Kinnucan and Broadband significant consulting fees for the information that Kinnucan provided. Kinnucan in turn compensated his sources with cash, meals, ski trips and other vacations, and even befriended some sources to gain access to confidential information.
The SEC's complaint specifically alleged that in July 2010, Kinnucan obtained material nonpublic information from a source at F5 Networks Inc., a Seattle-based provider of networking technology. On the morning of July 2, Kinnucan learned that F5 had generated better-than-expected financial results for the third quarter of its 2010 fiscal year, with the public announcement scheduled for July 21. Within hours of learning the confidential details, Kinnucan had phone conversations or left messages with several clients to convey that F5's revenues would exceed market expectations. At least three clients — an analyst and two portfolio managers — caused trades at their respective investment advisory firms on the basis of Kinnucan's inside information. The insider trading resulted in profits or avoided losses of nearly $1.6 million, the amount that Kinnucan and Broadband have been ordered to disgorge.
SEC Granted Summary Judgment in Insider Trading Case Against John Kinnucan and His Expert Consulting Firm
The Securities and Exchange Commission announced that earlier today Judge Alison J. Nathan of the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York entered final judgments in the SEC's civil injunctive action against John Kinnucan and his Portland, Oregon-based expert consulting firm Broadband Research Corporation. The Court imposed judgments of $6,533,492.88 against each defendant on a joint and several basis, including disgorgement of $1,583,445.96 together with prejudgment interest of $199,790.14 and a civil penalty of $4,750,337.88. The defendants were also permanently enjoined from future violations of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 and Rule 10b-5.
The charges against Kinnucan and Broadband stemmed from the SEC's ongoing investigation of insider trading involving expert networks. In a parallel criminal case, Kinnucan previously pled guilty to two counts of securities fraud and one count of conspiracy to commit securities fraud. Kinnucan is currently incarcerated in California.
In its complaint, filed on February 17, 2012, the SEC alleged that Kinnucan and Broadband claimed to be in the business of providing clients with legitimate research about publicly-traded technology companies, but instead routinely tipped clients with material nonpublic information that Kinnucan obtained from prohibited sources inside the companies. Clients then traded on the inside information. Portfolio managers and analysts at prominent hedge funds and investment advisers paid Kinnucan and Broadband significant consulting fees for the information that Kinnucan provided. Kinnucan in turn compensated his sources with cash, meals, ski trips and other vacations, and even befriended some sources to gain access to confidential information.
The SEC's complaint specifically alleged that in July 2010, Kinnucan obtained material nonpublic information from a source at F5 Networks Inc., a Seattle-based provider of networking technology. On the morning of July 2, Kinnucan learned that F5 had generated better-than-expected financial results for the third quarter of its 2010 fiscal year, with the public announcement scheduled for July 21. Within hours of learning the confidential details, Kinnucan had phone conversations or left messages with several clients to convey that F5's revenues would exceed market expectations. At least three clients — an analyst and two portfolio managers — caused trades at their respective investment advisory firms on the basis of Kinnucan's inside information. The insider trading resulted in profits or avoided losses of nearly $1.6 million, the amount that Kinnucan and Broadband have been ordered to disgorge.
Wednesday, April 2, 2014
TWO PRINCIPALS AND COMPANY CHARGED WITH COMMODITY POOL FRAUD BY CFTC
FROM: COMMODITY FUTURES TRADING COMMISSION
CFTC Charges New York-Based SK Madison Commodities, LLC and its principals, Michael James Seward and Yan Kaziyev, with Commodity Pool Fraud and Other Violations
Federal Court Issues Emergency Order Freezing Assets and Protecting Books and Records
Washington, DC – The U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) today announced that on March 24, 2014, Judge Sidney Stein of the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York (Manhattan) issued an emergency Order freezing and preserving the remaining pool participant assets under the control of Michael James Seward, Yan Kaziyev, and their company SK Madison Commodities, LLC (SKMC), a Commodity Pool Operator based in New York City. The Order also freezes assets controlled by a successor company, SK Madison, LLC, prohibits Seward, Kaziyev, and SKMC from destroying books and records, and allows the CFTC immediate access to those records.
This emergency Order is part of a CFTC enforcement action filed on March 24, 2014. The CFTC Complaint alleges that, from as early as October 2010, Seward and Kaziyev, by and through SKMC (collectively, Defendants), fraudulently solicited more than $1.3 million from members of the public to trade futures in a commodity pool by, among other things, misrepresenting their trading practices and historical trading returns. The Complaint further alleges that the Defendants prepared and distributed to pool participants false account statements and performance reports showing huge profits, while at the same time Defendants were losing money trading futures and diverting large amounts of pool participants’ funds for Defendants’ own use. In addition to fraud, the Complaint alleges that the Defendants committed certain registration violations.
In its continuing litigation, the CFTC seeks full restitution to defrauded pool participants, disgorgement of any ill-gotten gains, the payment of appropriate civil monetary penalties, permanent registration and trading bans, and a permanent injunction from future violations of federal commodities laws, as charged.
CFTC Charges New York-Based SK Madison Commodities, LLC and its principals, Michael James Seward and Yan Kaziyev, with Commodity Pool Fraud and Other Violations
Federal Court Issues Emergency Order Freezing Assets and Protecting Books and Records
Washington, DC – The U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) today announced that on March 24, 2014, Judge Sidney Stein of the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York (Manhattan) issued an emergency Order freezing and preserving the remaining pool participant assets under the control of Michael James Seward, Yan Kaziyev, and their company SK Madison Commodities, LLC (SKMC), a Commodity Pool Operator based in New York City. The Order also freezes assets controlled by a successor company, SK Madison, LLC, prohibits Seward, Kaziyev, and SKMC from destroying books and records, and allows the CFTC immediate access to those records.
This emergency Order is part of a CFTC enforcement action filed on March 24, 2014. The CFTC Complaint alleges that, from as early as October 2010, Seward and Kaziyev, by and through SKMC (collectively, Defendants), fraudulently solicited more than $1.3 million from members of the public to trade futures in a commodity pool by, among other things, misrepresenting their trading practices and historical trading returns. The Complaint further alleges that the Defendants prepared and distributed to pool participants false account statements and performance reports showing huge profits, while at the same time Defendants were losing money trading futures and diverting large amounts of pool participants’ funds for Defendants’ own use. In addition to fraud, the Complaint alleges that the Defendants committed certain registration violations.
In its continuing litigation, the CFTC seeks full restitution to defrauded pool participants, disgorgement of any ill-gotten gains, the payment of appropriate civil monetary penalties, permanent registration and trading bans, and a permanent injunction from future violations of federal commodities laws, as charged.
Tuesday, April 1, 2014
MAN ACCUSED OF TRADING AHEAD OF BAD NEWS
FROM: SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION
Charges Massachusetts Resident with Insider Trading
The Securities and Exchange Commission today charged David J. Cancian of Lexington, Massachusetts, with insider trading ahead of an April 5, 2011 announcement by Massachusetts-based American Superconductor Corporation that caused the company’s stock price to tumble 42%. Cancian made profits and avoided losses of over $46,000. Cancian has agreed to pay a total of $97,843 in disgorgement of ill-gotten gains, prejudgment interest, and a civil penalty to settle the insider trading charges.
According to the SEC’s complaint, filed in federal district court in Boston, Cancian, while having drinks on April 1, 2011 with a friend who was a senior executive at the company, learned that American Superconductor’s stock price was likely to drop. The next trading day, April 4, 2011, Cancian sold the majority of American Superconductor stock he owned and sold “covered call options” to offset losses on the stock he continued to hold. On April 5, 2011, after the close of trading, American Superconductor announced that its financial results for its fourth quarter and fiscal year ended March 31, 2011 would be lower than expected due to a deteriorating relationship with its primary customer, Sinovel Wind Group Co., Ltd., of China. American Superconductor’s stock price plummeted 42% the next day. As a result of Cancian’s trading ahead of the company’s announcement of negative news, he made profits and avoided losses of $46,930.
Cancian has agreed to settle this case, without admitting or denying the allegations in the SEC’s complaint, by consenting to a judgment enjoining him from future violations of Section 10(b) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 and Rule 10b-5 thereunder, and ordering him to pay disgorgement of $46,930 (representing his ill-gotten gains) plus prejudgment interest of $3,983 and a civil penalty of $46,930.
The SEC’s investigation was conducted by Asita Obeyesekere, Michael Foster, and Kevin Kelcourse in the SEC’s Boston Regional Office. The Commission acknowledges the assistance of the Options Regulatory Surveillance Authority and the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority in this matter. The SEC’s investigation is ongoing.
Charges Massachusetts Resident with Insider Trading
The Securities and Exchange Commission today charged David J. Cancian of Lexington, Massachusetts, with insider trading ahead of an April 5, 2011 announcement by Massachusetts-based American Superconductor Corporation that caused the company’s stock price to tumble 42%. Cancian made profits and avoided losses of over $46,000. Cancian has agreed to pay a total of $97,843 in disgorgement of ill-gotten gains, prejudgment interest, and a civil penalty to settle the insider trading charges.
According to the SEC’s complaint, filed in federal district court in Boston, Cancian, while having drinks on April 1, 2011 with a friend who was a senior executive at the company, learned that American Superconductor’s stock price was likely to drop. The next trading day, April 4, 2011, Cancian sold the majority of American Superconductor stock he owned and sold “covered call options” to offset losses on the stock he continued to hold. On April 5, 2011, after the close of trading, American Superconductor announced that its financial results for its fourth quarter and fiscal year ended March 31, 2011 would be lower than expected due to a deteriorating relationship with its primary customer, Sinovel Wind Group Co., Ltd., of China. American Superconductor’s stock price plummeted 42% the next day. As a result of Cancian’s trading ahead of the company’s announcement of negative news, he made profits and avoided losses of $46,930.
Cancian has agreed to settle this case, without admitting or denying the allegations in the SEC’s complaint, by consenting to a judgment enjoining him from future violations of Section 10(b) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 and Rule 10b-5 thereunder, and ordering him to pay disgorgement of $46,930 (representing his ill-gotten gains) plus prejudgment interest of $3,983 and a civil penalty of $46,930.
The SEC’s investigation was conducted by Asita Obeyesekere, Michael Foster, and Kevin Kelcourse in the SEC’s Boston Regional Office. The Commission acknowledges the assistance of the Options Regulatory Surveillance Authority and the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority in this matter. The SEC’s investigation is ongoing.
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