Practice

Mutual fund managers are tipping their caps to interim chief John Reed as the New York Stock Exchange preps itself for a makeover. But industry lobbyists suggest that the proposed governance structure fails to provide adequate representation.

New York Attorney General Eliot Spitzer arrested three former executives of Security Trust Co. on felony charges last Tuesday. His suit charges the men with grand larceny in the first degree, for stealing more than $1 million.

Morningstar has recommended that investors dump shares of 11 PBHG funds after its founders were charged with securities fraud for allowing two of the firm's clients to trade billions of dollars in and out of its funds.

Viewed as watchdogs by some and lapdogs by critics, mutual fund boards have arguably seen their responsibilities grow alongside the complexity and demands of the business. Directors have recently come under fire as a result of Eliot Spitzer's probe into fund trading, as they were presumably unaware of the violations. Questions of board due diligence and the adequacy of the governance structure obviously emerge.

Alpine Management & Research, Purchase, N.Y., has introduced a unique dividend-paying fund that it claims is more active than many new offerings designed to take advantage of the latest tax laws favoring qualified dividends.

House Passes Baker Bill, Updated to Address Scandal

Think mutual fund investors are the only ones trying to decipher which sponsors have been naughty and which have been nice?

WASHINGTON - Testifying before the Senate Banking Committee last week, SEC Chairman William Donaldson called for the formation of a new risk assessment unit to circumvent abuses in mutual funds and other investments.

Members of the House of Representatives voted overwhelmingly (418-2) Wednesday to approve the Mutual Funds Integrity and Fee Transparency Act, also known as the Baker Bill.

Federal Reserve Chairman Alan Greenspan and U.S. Treasury Secretary John Snow on Tuesday called for swift punishment for individuals convicted in the widening mutual fund scandal, Reuters reports.