Regulation

SEC Chairman Arthur Levitt is expected to recommend changes in the way mutual funds are governed at an industry conference on mutual fund regulation which begins today.

NEW YORK - The Clinton Administration would welcome testimonials from the mutual fund industry on the capability of the average American investor to make sound investment decisions for his social security funds, with the help of professionals, said Carolyn Weaver, a member of the Clinton Administration Social Security Advisory Board. Weaver spoke on privatization of the Social Security Administration at a symposium sponsored by MFS Investment Management to mark the 75th anniversary of its mutual funds.

Edgar Online now allows individuals to receive e-mail alerts of the Securities and Exchange Commission's Edgar reports through a new service called Edgar Online Personal. Located at www.edgar-online.com/personal, the service costs $9.95 a month, although a free trial is available at www.edgar-online.com/trial.asp?src=eolpt. Users can supply up to ten variables, including ticker symbol, industry group, filing type, filing category and geography to define information most important to them.

WASHINGTON - The corporate structure that the mutual fund industry says is a key to its effectiveness - the system which permits independent mutual fund directors to serve on numerous boards in the same fund complex - appears unlikely to change any time soon.

WASHINGTON - The alphabet soup of fund share classes has become so confusing that the mutual fund industry, the SEC and Congress should examine whether the law that created the system should be changed, according to an industry executive.

The Electronic Compliance Foundation (ECF) is drafting a no-action letter to the Securities and Exchange Commission asking the SEC to permit investors to obtain more investment information on-line.

As Jan. 1, 2000 approaches, financial service company executives are finding that there really are two year 2000 problems.

A lawsuit filed this past July alleging securities fraud against Investment Adviser's, Inc. (IAI) of Minneapolis is continuing to twist its way through the legal system. In the meantime, the fund which is the target of the suit has revealed that approximately 65 percent of its portfolio is illiquid.

A New York federal court judge has dismissed the second of five cases which challenge the independence of mutual fund directors based on their allegedly high pay.

Lawyers have become clear beneficiaries of fights over the performance of closed-end funds and it is the shareholders of closed-end funds who are primarily paying for the lawyers' good fortunes.