At the same time mutual funds are scurrying to meet new regulatory requirements by Oct. 5, the
"This is a very timely project," said Barbara V. Weidlich, president of NICSA. "More than ever, compliance is a concern not only to compliance officers but to all executives in the money management business."
As an operations organization, NICSA is involved because operations departments are often very involved in business functions affected by the new requirements, Weidlich said.
Mutual funds must appoint a chief compliance officer and institute practices for a compliance program suitable for their organizations. Part of the complication comes from the fact that many mutual fund services are provided by outside vendors, and funds must also assess and supervise those companies compliance policies.
The survey will look at what steps firms have taken so institute those policies, procedures and controls. Also, NICSA will ask about companies experience with two aspects of the USA Patriot Act, the customer identification program and anti-money laundering.
