Page 8 - Sec Enforcement News Today

It has been publicly reported that the Dallas office of the SEC is currently engaged in an investigation of ESG disclosures by companies doing business with state government entities in Texas.

Unregistered municipal advisor activity and breaches of fiduciary duty remain priorities.

The SEC and DOJ each announced fraud charges against five Russian nationals. The five defendanant are charged with a multiyear scheme of hacking into service providers that help public companies make quarterly and annual filings with the SEC through the EDGAR filing system.

The defendants are raising questions about due process and the definition of fee-splitting arrangements.

"The vast majority of muni issuers are trying to do the right thing,” Zehner said. “The vast majority of underwriters and municipal advisors are trying to do the right thing.”

ARA Holdings Inc. is settling for a $2 million penalty.

Following the news that Rebecca Olsen, former director of the Office of Municipal Securities has moved to deputy chief in place of Mark Zehner, the Securities and Exchange Commission has named Ernesto Lanza as acting director.

The Securities and Exchange Commission has charged an Illinois-based broker with defrauding three investors out of $800,000 by luring them into investing in nonexistent tax-exempt bonds.

The Securities and Exchange Commission has obtained a final judgment against John Paulsen, a broker-dealer charged with aiding and abetting a pay-to-play scheme with the New York State Common Retirement Fund.

The top executives of a defunct cybersecurity company were charged with duping investors.