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The federal government began requiring mutual funds last month to look out for and report suspicious customer activity, The Baltimore Sun reports. Looking to ferret out tax evaders, drug dealers, mobsters, gamblers and terrorists, the government requires firms to file suspicious activity reports (SARs).

The Securities and Exchange Commission wants the mother of a former Fidelity trader to testify about whether she bought stocks due to information her son provided to her, The Wall Street Journal reports.

Jefferies & Co. and two of its executives settled with the Securities and Exchange Commission on Monday over providing Fidelity mutual fund traders with $2 million worth of illegal gifts and entertainment to secure their trading business.

Twenty-six-year-olds and their grandfathers may not share the same investment philosophies, but there are a few ideas that transcend generations, according to the results of a recent survey published by Eaton Vance.

Investors may be getting a raw deal when investing in index mutual funds through their broker, as they pay a steep "broker penalty." The extra operating costs paid over time for broker-sold load index funds are triple those paid by investors in true no-load mutual funds, according to a study by Zero Alpha Group and Fund Democracy, released during a conference call last week.

The NASD and NYSE Group have agreed to merge their regulatory operations into a single self-regulatory organization that will oversee all U.S. securities broker/dealers. The name of the organization will be determined at a later date and will begin operating in the second quarter of next year.

For fund managers seeking independent research, a new service from The Bank of New York is like online dating.

Mergers and acquisitions (M&As) among investment companies reached a record this year, and the feverish deal making may continue into the new year as the move toward open architecture and globalization drives companies to seek attractive opportunities.

A former fund company president is betting that investors will embrace the ability to predetermine the return on an investment and achieving that return via an online auction site that would pit anonymous investor/bidders against each other with the highest bidder being victorious.

A former worker of Principal Financial Group has reportedly been charged with draining $167,000 from mutual fund accounts, and the Des Moines, Iowa, police last Wednesday issued a warrant for the arrest of Paul N. Germain, 62. If convicted, he faces up to 10 years in jail. According to the police, Germain had been siphoning money from the accounts since 1997 and the company didn't find out until a recent audit. A Principal spokeswoman assured that all of the money has been replaced in the shareholder accounts.

John Kim, the head portfolio manager of KL Group, a collapsed hedge fund in West Palm Beach, Fla., was reportedly ordered arrested last week by U.S. District Judge Kenneth Ryskamp for defying an asset freeze on money intended to be returned to investors. According to a lawsuit the Securities and Exchange Commission brought against Kim last year, he defrauded investors of more than $200 million.

A poll of 86,000 certified financial analysts by the CFA Institute has found that Charles "Ed" Haldeman, CEO of Putnam Investments, is one of three executives they believe to be the most influential in the investment management industry. The two other CEOs named are Jean-Pierre Mittaz of UBS Global Asset Management and Mohammad Shoaib of Al Meezan Investment Management.

Franklin Templeton Selects Two New Wholesalers

American Century Investments launched three load funds last week. Two funds, the Short Duration Bond Fund and the Core Plus Bond Fund, will be managed by American Century’s fixed income investment team, while a separate international equity fund will be managed by its quantitative equity group.

As the dollar continues to decline in value against foreign currencies, mutual fund investors in some international socks and bond fund investments have more than doubled their returns, according to The Wall Street Journal.

Janus Capital has launched an International Equity Fund that seeks long-term growth of capital by investing in non-U.S. companies.

Women who have a financial adviser are 62% more apt to participate in financial decisions and are more informed about their finances versus 47% without an advisor, according to a study by Securian Financial Group and Opinion Research Corporation.

Global assets controlled by hedge funds have reached $2 trillion, an increase of about 18% since April, according to Dow Jones International.

Investors are likely to rejoice at the estimated $200 billion in capital gains distributions this year—until they get their tax bill, Business Week reports.

U.S. Bank Institutional Trust & Custody has entered into a definitive agreement to sell its 401(k) business to Great-West Life & Annuity. The unit has only 195,000 participants, and to be profitable, a defined contribution business needs at least two million participants, the bank said.